Galen Weston Jr.

Willard Galen Garfield Weston (born December 19, 1972) is a Canadian businessman and a member of the prominent Weston family.[1] He serves as Chairman and CEO of George Weston Limited,[2] as well as Executive Chairman of Loblaw Companies Limited.[3] He is the only son of Galen Weston Sr. and Hilary Weston.

Galen Weston Jr.
Weston in 2011
BornDecember 19, 1972 (1972-12-19) (age 48)
Dublin, Ireland
NationalityCanadian
Alma mater
OccupationBusinessman
Spouse(s)Alexandra Schmidt
Parent(s)
Relatives

Early life and education

Weston was born in Dublin, Ireland, where his father had relocated to in the 1960s. Weston's father originally moved to Dublin to start up a supermarket chain, and he eventually married and had two children.[4] The Westons moved to Canada in 1974.

Weston grew up in Toronto, Ontario, where he attended Upper Canada College. He subsequently graduated from Harvard University with an AB degree and from Columbia University with an MBA.

Career

Weston took over Loblaw Companies Limited in October 2006. Beforehand, he had held positions in the company for eight years and was a member on their board of directors. At that point, the company was worth around $9.5 billion.[5]

In January 2017, it was announced that Weston had succeeded his father as CEO of George Weston Limited.

Weston has been featured in a number of recent television and radio commercials for Loblaws and its President's Choice line of products. Many of these ads have focused on a new environmentally friendly image for Loblaws, with others dealing with the semi-annual PC Insider's Report.

On December 19, 2017, Loblaw and its parent company George Weston Limited announced action the companies had taken to address their role in a price-fixing arrangement involving certain packaged bread products. In the statement, Weston is quoted as saying "this sort of behaviour is wrong and has no place in our business or Canada's grocery industry," and that "this should never have happened."[6] In response, Loblaw and George Weston said the companies had reported the price fixing to the Competition Bureau, that the employees responsible for George Weston and Loblaw’s role in this are no longer with the companies and the companies had significantly enhanced their compliance programs with measures that are industry-leading and go further than the Competition Bureau’s requirements. Loblaw also announced it was offering customers a $25 Loblaw Card, which could be used to purchase items sold in Loblaw grocery stores across Canada.[6] Registration for the card opened on January 8, 2018, as of April 2019, many people have still not received the restitution.[7]

Weston has faced frequent criticism from the Canadian labour movement, including from unions representing his companies' workers and from organizations promoting workers' rights and poverty reduction more generally. On December 31, 2017 Galen Weston Jr. "won" labour organization RankandFile.ca's 2017 Scumbag of the Year award. The organization holds Weston responsible for opposing a $15 minimum wage, engaging in tax avoidance via offshore holdings, firing 500 workers and closing 22 stores in response to an increase in minimum wage, and being caught in a 14 year bread price fixing scam.[8]

In June 2020, Weston confirmed the cancellation of an hourly $2.00 CAD wage premium to Loblaw workers, earning criticism from Unifor President Jerry Dias. The premium was paid to low-wage grocery store workers, who were deemed "essential" and required to attend work in dangerous conditions while most of Canada was shut down in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. [9]

References
  1. "Willard Galen Garfield Weston". Companies House. Retrieved 2019-05-04.
  2. "Galen G. Weston takes over as CEO of George Weston Ltd". Global News. Retrieved 2020-04-02.
  3. "Loblaw executive chairman Weston takes on president's role". Reuters. 2014-07-17. Retrieved 2020-04-02.
  4. "At home with Hilary Weston". The Irish Times. February 8, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  5. Anne Kingston. "Galen Weston Jr. Takes over at Loblaws". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved August 29, 2019.
  6. "George Weston and Loblaw take action to address industry-wide anti-competitive activity". Loblaw Companies Limited. Canada News Wire. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
  7. Cazzin, Julie. "You can sign up for the $25 Loblaw gift card now. Here's how". Macleans.ca. Maclean's Magazine. Retrieved 9 January 2018.
  8. https://www.rankandfile.ca/galen-weston-jr-2017-scumbag-of-the-year/
  9. https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/loblaw-is-ending-pandemic-pay-increase-for-its-workers-1.4980580
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