TTC strike averted as union, management reach last-minute deal
Union says tentative agreement reached overnight, but needs to be presented to members
The TTC is operating normally on Friday after the union representing nearly 12,000 of its workers reached a deal with management, averting a strike at the last minute.
Marvin Alfred, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 113, confirmed Friday morning that a tentative agreement had been reached late Thursday and that talks had continued until almost 4 a.m.
"What we have right now is a deal," he said.
"We have something signed, but we're still preparing and making sure we can have something tangible for our membership," he told CBC Radio's Metro Morning on Friday.
Agreement covers 3-year period
Alfred said the agreement covers a three-year period until March 31, 2027. He wouldn't provide details, saying there is more work to do before the union thinks about a schedule for ratification.
Coun. Jamaal Myers, chair of the TTC board, said he hopes the board will approve the deal at its next meeting.
"This deal reflects the commitment to maintaining high standards of service for transit riders, while also valuing the hard work that ATU Local 113 members perform each and every day," Myers said.
TTC CEO Rick Leary said the tentative deal is a good one for employees, the city and the transit agency — which moves roughly 1.3 million riders per weekday, according to data from May posted in the CEO's report.
"For the next three years, we have confirmed service in the city with the TTC," Leary said.
"We still have to dot the I's and cross the T's. You can imagine there's lot of wording that has to be confirmed, but that's a normal process when it comes to bargaining and negotiating, and over the coming weeks."
Leary said the deal will have to be ratified by the union rank and file before it's taken to the TTC board.
Commuters relieved, mayor glad despite strained budget
Mayor Olivia Chow said Friday the city had factored in negotiation estimates when making this year's budget — as the city's finances are increasingly strained.
Chow said she's glad a deal has been reached, calling it good for the city, workers and the TTC.
"Toronto has a fiscal problem," said Chow, pointing toward an inherited deficit.
"But if you consider the economic loss of people not being able to get to work, people not being able to get to their doctor's appointments ... it'll be a huge, huge economic damage."
The deal avoids a major political dilemma for Chow, whose pro-labour credentials helped her garner the transit union's endorsement in last year's election, said Larry Savage, a Brock University labour studies professor.
In the event of a strike, she may have been left to decide if or when to ask for back-to-work legislation. A provincial source told CBC News on Thursday it would only draft such a bill on her request.
"Chow definitely dodges a bullet," Savage said.
CBC News spoke to transit riders at Greenwood station Friday morning, with many saying they were relieved to find out the TTC would be operating normally.
Asala Abbas said she was ready to walk the full hour and 26 minutes to work in case of a strike.
"I was so relieved," she said. "They told us to have a plan B, so I was like really trying."
Krishna Kolamu, who uses transit daily, said an Uber to work would've been too expensive.
"I'm glad they came to an agreement," said Kolamu. "They got [what] they want, and then we get to take TTC."
The union represents roughly three-quarters of all TTC staff. The two sides had been in collective bargaining since February, with union representatives saying previously that wages, benefits and job security were the main sticking points in talks.
Union members voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action in April, after their previous collective agreement expired at the end of March.
The last TTC strike in 2008 ended after less than two days when the provincial government legislated employees back to work on the mayor's request.
Last year, an Ontario Superior Court judge ruled that a 2011 law that forbade them from walking off the job was unconstitutional, and that was upheld by the province's top court last month.
Chow suggested the more than decade-long TTC strike ban imposed by the province may have contributed to the complexity of the negotiations.
"There had been a lot of different demands that had been on the table for a long, long time. And because of that history, it's complex, there are many issues. So that's probably why it's taken a long time," she said.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
With files from Lucas Powers, Meagan Fitzpatrick and The Canadian Press