Blockbuster Canada Closure

Blockbuster Canada has always been the one place that has been known to rent and sell video games and movies. The issue of bankruptcy is a shocker to most people, including the employees. In late June, after closing over 150 Blockbuster locations across Canada, owner Grant Thornton told the remaining store locations that they had nothing to worry about. All of the remaining employees were under the impression that new management was to come into power and that their stores would remain open. Until a few weeks ago, everything seemed fine. The workers were led on for a few months until September rolled around. Thornton filed for bankruptcy, putting around 2300 out of work.

This issue really bothers me. The employees shouldn't have been told that they still had a fighting chance to remain open, when realistically, they never did. I walked in with my dad last weekend, and my dad being Union president for the Pepsi Cola plant here in Ottawa, was extremely interested in what they had to say. The three employees that were working the cash had a lot on their mind They explained to my dad and I about how they were under the impression that the company was coming to terms with a new owner and that they were close on making a deal. They were completely devastated when they heard what was really going on. What makes this whole situation worse, is that many of the employees wont be paid. Some of the employees that have worked at the location off of Montreal Road and St. Laurent Boulevard, have been working there for 7-8 years, and they wont be paid accordingly to how long they've been there.

Now that Blockbuster Canada has filed for bankruptcy, Rogers video will no longer offer renting video games and movies. The only reason according to the employees at Blockbuster, that Rogers offered game and video rentals, was to compete with Blockbuster. Kiosks will now be available, where you can just walk up and order your movies right then and there instead of having to worry about going in to a store to get them. That's the plan of the new Blockbuster kiosks, which will now be American run.

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