City, transit union reach tentative agreement, bus delays and cancellations to end

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/05/2015 (3253 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

After three weeks of back-and-forth between the city and the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 15 over proposed wage increases, a tentative deal struck late Friday night hopes to satisfy both sides. The next hurdle for the proposed deal will be to pass a vote at city council. No date for the vote has been set. 

“We’re optimistic that we’re making good progress and working towards restoring regular services as soon as possible,” Dave Wardrop, the director of Winnipeg Transit, said Saturday after the tentative deal was struck near midnight Friday.

Since April 27, transit workers participated in a voluntary overtime strike during negotiations, which caused some bus delays and cancellations during peak times. About 20 to 25 buses were removed from the roads, usually during rush hour, Wardrop said.

ATU lifted its overtime ban Friday night after the negotiations wrapped. ATU Local 15’s president, John Callahan, said the union is happy with the deal they reached and will recommend it to their members.

None of the final numbers in the tentative deal will be released publically until it is ratified. This could take weeks and Wardrop couldn’t confirm a timeline yet.

“We’ll take the time that we need and we’ll see what council’s perspective is on the tentative deal, ultimately,” Wardrop said.

On Wednesday, the city revealed their bargaining position with the transit union. They offered Winnipeg Transit drivers an eight per cent increase over four years and mechanics 8.81 per cent over the same period.

The city said the transit union countered with demands for a 10.34 per cent increase for drivers spread over three years, and a 20.24 per cent increase for mechanics.

Callahan said higher wages would help Winnipeg Transit become more competitive in the Canadian market and attract more workers.

Still, the union president said the city ought not to have released details to the public about their negotiations.

“They’re trying to make us out to be greedy trade unionists who only want more money, when we’re just trying to be competitive,” he told the Free Press in a previous interview.

A civic spokeswoman said the city went public with bargaining positions because “we wanted to update citizens on the status of negotiations relating to this important service.”

Transit riders waiting in the Graham Avenue bus corridor Saturday were glad to hear about the tentative deal, though most agreed the strike didn’t affect their riding schedule.

“I haven’t noticed really much disruption of service, but I hope they got a good deal. Hopefully (the drivers) will be a little less grumpy,” said Aaron Cramer while waiting at the bus stop. “I believe they deserve to be well paid, like any other worker. Especially since there’s a great deal of risk in their job — they could get their ass beat.”

Added safety precautions for drivers were also part of the city and the ATU’s conversation, but negotiating wages was the main priority, both parties said.

Ljubica Flajs, another transit rider, discussed how difficult transit work must be.

“You’re sitting and you have millions of sorts of people come in with complaints and yelling. I wouldn’t want to be in their shoes, it’s a hard job,” she said.

Callahan and Wardrop both thanked riders for remaining supportive during the prolonged talks.

“It was overwhelming, the support that we got from riders and from other members of the labour movement,” Callahan said. “Now we want to get back to the real task at hand and that’s to help to enhance the service. I think we have a lot of work to do, but we’re committed to doing it.”

j.botelho.urbanski@gmail.com