City and outside workers’ union reach tentative deal
Posted February 5, 2012 1:36 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
TORONTO, Ont. – As you heard first on 680News and CityNews Channel, a tentative deal was reached Sunday between the City of Toronto and the union representing its 6,000 outside workers.
The deal avoids a possible strike or lockout.
The marathon negotiations continued well past the two deadlines — the initial one was 12:01 a.m., but that was extended to 2 a.m.
The deal was officially announced Sunday just after 8:30 a.m. by Toronto Civic Employees’ Union, CUPE Local 416 president Mark Ferguson, at a news conference at the Sheraton Centre.
“My bargaining committee, I would like to thank for the tireless and endless hours they have put in to come to a settlement. We right now have a tentative settlement in place,” Ferguson said, and added that negotiations were tough.
“We are extremely excited at the fact we’re able to resolve this through direct negotiation, and my members are quite pleased that they will be able to continue to provide great public services to Toronto,” he added.
Watch video below: CUPE Local 416 president Mark Ferguson announces the deal and discusses the difficult negotiation.
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The union represents about 6,000 city employees, including garbage collectors, road and parks workers, animal control officers and paramedics. As a result of the deal, city services and programs will continue as usual.
Ferguson said the union will be returning to the table Monday at 9 a.m. to put the finishing touches on the deal.
Details of the deal will be released once it is ratified by members of CUPE Local 416, followed by approved from city council.
However, Ferguson said the union was forced to make “numerous concessions.”
“You just need to look towards what we were up against. Numerous concessions. An administration that was not interested in getting to a deal … they did want to get to a deal after all,” he said.
Mayor Rob Ford spoke to the media at around 9:30 a.m. and said he’s “very happy that the City of Toronto and local 416 have reached a new tentative collective agreement.”
“It’s a great day, an absolutely fantastic day for the taxpayers of this great city. I’m extremely happy we have been able to reach this agreement without a labour disruption,” he added. “I’m also confident we have a tentative agreement that city council will approve when the details are presented to them.”
“I want to thank the union for working with us and I want to thank our team for helping the taxpayers of this great city,” Ford said.
Watch video below: Mayor Rob Ford and deputy mayor Doug Holyday react to the CUPE 416 deal
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Holyday said “the taxpayers are the winners,” adding, “it’s a good contract for the union and it’s certainly a good contract for the taxpayers, and we can’t give out any details as you know … ratification probably will come in the next week or so,” he added. “In the end we all came together and we’ve done what I think is best for the taxpayers.”
Holyday also addressed some of the rhetoric going around concerning Ferguson.
“In the end, he was not ‘Dr. No.’ As we got down to dealing with the problems and discussing it, as I said all along it could only be solved at the table, and that’s exactly what happened,” said Holyday.
Meanwhile, bargaining with Local 79, which represents the City’s 23,000 inside workers.
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If a deal was not reached between the city and its outside workers, the city would have been in a legal position to lock out its outside workers, and the union in a legal position to strike.
However, the city manager indicated there wouldn’t have been a lockout if a deal wasn’t reached by the deadline, but that the 6,000 workers would have returned to work under the terms in the city’s latest offer.
Should union members have decided to fight, one option would be a strike vote, which would have likely taken time to organize. If the city had decided to move forward with layoffs, that process would have also likely taken some time.
On Friday, Ferguson said the negotiations took a turn for the worse, and called the city a “bully.”
“Their proposal came wrapped in a threat,” he said.
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Ferguson said he felt headway was being made in talks, but claims that the city gave them their final offer, which he believes is trying to provoke the union into striking.
Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong, who sits on the Employee and Labour Relations Committee, said the terms were fair.
“What we’re asking for is the flexibility that we need to provide the services for the residence of the city of Toronto. Quite frankly, right now we don’t have that level of flexibility in terms of bumping provisions, in terms of jobs for life,” he said.
“We’ve offered them a reasonable contract but we’re asking for the management rights to manage so that we can find the savings and efficiencies that we need to get this city going and to continue to provide the services that we need to provide,” Minnan-Wong added.
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In previous days, Ferguson was highly critical of Holyday.
“The deputy mayor has been telling you the city wants a negotiated settlement. We now know that the city has never been interested in getting a deal here,” Ferguson said. “And if the deputy mayor tells you he wants a deal, he is not being truthful.”
Holyday had said there would be a contingency plan in the event of a strike or lockout.
“If such a thing would happen our people would be notifying the media and through the media to the public, what steps would be taken and how we would handle the matter,” he explained.
If there was a lockout or strike, city swimming pools and ice rinks could have been locked up. The TTC, police and fire services, city-run homes for the aged, the Toronto Public Library and Toronto Community Housing properties wouldn’t be affected by a strike or lockout.
