Unifor Local 2098 and Local 200 are set to complete a merger in the new year.
"We can't continue to service our members the way we'd love to and we can't be as active in the community if we didn't put things in place to make sure the local went forward," says DJ Lacey, president of Local 2098. "Like all the other locals in the area, they're very active. Their leadership is very strong there."
Lacey says the two sides have been talking about the move since June. He expects the merger could mean more bargaining power.
"Local 200 and many of the locals around the area were there for us in the last round of bargaining, so with some of the knowledge and some of the experience, it would definitely be an asset for the local," says Lacey.
Local 2098 had 110 members bought out as part of the last round of bargaining. It's the first year of a three year deal with 103 members working now at the Diageo plant in Amherstburg, while 50 are laid off.