Toronto union lockout countdown to Feb. 5 begins as minister issues ‘no board’ report

The provincial labour minister has authorized Mayor Rob Ford to lock out Toronto’s unionized outdoor workers in 17 days.

The minister’s “no board” report also allows the outdoor workers to strike. A winter lockout, however, is far more likely.

A city lockout or Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 416 strike will become legal at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 5, the city said in a statement.

Garbage collection and snow removal would be impacted by a lockout of or strike by the 6,000 outdoor workers. The minister’s authorization does not permit a lockout of or strike by CUPE Local 79, which represents 18,000 indoor workers at such facilities as daycares, community centres and nursing homes.

“We will have contingency plans in place to address key city services in the event of a disruption,” the city’s top bureaucrat, city manager Joe Pennachetti, said in the statement. “It's important to note, however, we are still at the table with Local 416 and we are working hard to reach a negotiated settlement.”

CUPE spokesperson Kevin Wilson said Local 416 would not yet comment because the two parties are currently meeting.

Ford’s administration requested the report, saying negotiations with Local 416 had proven fruitless. As is customary, Labour Minister Linda Jeffrey quickly complied.

Critics of the Ford administration say the mayor decided long ago to lock out city unions. Ford and his allies, however, say they do not want to do so.

The administration’s request for the “no board” report was merely intended to pressure the union into concessions, Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday said last week.

“It’s not our intent to lock them out, I can tell you that. We want a negotiated settlement, and that’s why we’re doing these things,” Holyday, chair of council’s labour relations committee, told reporters.

Local 416 President Mark Ferguson countered: “The sole function of (a no-board report) is to ensure they are one step closer to their lockout. We’re not looking to take a strike. If there is a labour disruption in the city of Toronto it will be solely at the feet of this administration.”

Original Article
Source: Star