TORONTO — A strike by 2,200 GO Transit workers began at 12:01 a.m. today (Monday, Nov. 7) after talks broke down over the weekend, halting bus service by the Toronto-area transit agency. The seven GO rail lines and UP Express service to Pearson Airport continue to operate.
The strike is by Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1587, which represents bus drivers, mechanics, station attendants, and office workers. The Canadian Press reports local president Rob Cormier said Sunday that talks broke down Sunday over safety concerns relating to outsourcing of jobs. GO Transit’s parent organization, Metrolinx, said the union walked away from weekend negotiations and declined a request to return to the bargaining table today.
The strike came after union members voted down a tentative agreement last week [see “Workers for Toronto’s GO Transit vote down …,” Trains News Wire, Nov. 5, 2022].
This is one example of why so many people in Texas shun public transit. Public service unions can use their political levers to pressure the politicans that oversee public transit to grant larger than warranted compensation gains, eliminae out moded work requirements, block productivity improvements, etc.
Now it’s safety concerns over outsourcing of jobs…Cormier really should pay attention to previous statements otherwise people are going to start not believing anything he says.
Gerald, it’s job safety, i.e., they want a promise from Metrolinx that those jobs won’t be outsourced. That’s been their sticking point all along, if you’ve been paying attention.