Union seeks court injunction on implementation of TTC’s vaccine mandate

The union representing TTC employees is asking an Ontario court to pause the transit agency’s mandatory vaccination policy.

ATU Local 113 filed an injunction with the Ontario Superior Court asking that the TTC not be allowed to put any employee on unpaid leave or terminate their employment later this month until an arbitrator makes a final decision on their grievance previously filed.

“To be clear, this injunction is not about vaccinations. This is about protecting 2,000 members’ jobs and their means to provide for themselves, their families and loved ones,” union president Carolo Santos said in a statement on Thursday.

The TTC says employees who remain unvaccinated or have not shared their status by the end of the day on November 20th will be placed on unpaid absence. Anyone who does not comply with the mandate by the end of the year will be fired. The measures do not apply to employees with an approved Ontario Human Rights Code accommodation or medical exemption.

Santos called the TTC policy one of the most punitive of all transit agencies in Canada, pointing out the inconsistency of the policy which does not require passengers to be vaccinated.

“Instead of firing unvaccinated employees and cutting service, the TTC should offer sensible alternatives, such as regular testing for the small percentage of workers who wish not to receive the vaccine,” he said. “These measures have already been successfully executed with Mississauga Transit and Brampton Transit and can be safely adopted in Toronto as well.”

The TTC has indicated that some services may have to be scaled back or even cut after November 20 due to staff shortages related to employees who fail to comply with the vaccine mandate.

“ATU Local 113 members who have worked on the front lines throughout the pandemic should not be blamed for service cuts that will harm the public. The real reason for service cuts is low ridership, not workers’ vaccination status,” said Santos.