September 1 Toronto Twenty waiters […]

When

1981-09-01

Description

September 1 Toronto Twenty waiters and bartenders at Toronto's two oldest gay bars, the Parkside Tavern (530 Yonge Street) and the St. Charles Tavern (488 Yonge Street) were locked out by management after a strike was called. The taverns were both owned by Norman Bolter and family, and were members of the Hotel Association of Metropolitan Toronto. Members of Local 280 of the International Beverage Dispensers and Bartenders Union had voted to strike on August 30. When employees at the Parkside and St. Charles arrived at work on September 1, they were asked to sign a paper to resign from the union or to leave. When they refused to sign, the lockout began. Many of the employees had many years of service, and most were heterosexual. They began to picket the taverns. When the taverns hired replacement waiters (mostly gay) to try to break the strike, gay customers supported the original staff by distributing flyers urging customers to drink at other bars while the strike was on. A settlement was ratified on September 18, 1981; it called for an 18 percent wage increase over two years.

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