TORONTO, Ont. - The City of Toronto is being accused of "union-busting" in its ongoing contract talks with outside and library workers.
As of Feb. 5, the city can lock out its 6,000 outside workers or the union can legally go on strike.The outside workers have been without a contract since the end of December and there's still no obvious resolution in sight.
Earlier Friday, the union held a news conference calling on the city to "get serious" in the contract talks.
CUPE 416 president Mark Ferguson said the city is stalling talks to run down the clock to Feb. 5, when it can rip up the current contract and impose whatever it wants.
"I would characterize this as a union-busting exercise," Ferguson said. "This isn't about negotiations, this is about payback for 2009."
The 2009 strike lasted 39 days. Ferguson said this time the city is determined to lock them out, something Public Works chair Denzil Minnen-Wong disputes.
"It's not the city's intention to have a lockout, Minnen-Wong explained. "Mr. Ferguson is the only one talking about a labour disruption right now."
Meanwhile, the union representing library workers has said the city is not negotiating with them and that they
have been isolated.
As a result, Maureen O'Reilly, president of the Toronto Public Library
Workers' Union (TPLWU), CUPE Local 4948, said the union has filed for
conciliation.
"We've asked the Ministry of Labour to come in and help us with our
talks. All we are interested in is achieving a fair collective agreement
and we're looking for assistance to do that," O'Reilly said.
Both sides have said a deal can be reached in the next eight days as long as meaningful talks are held. So far, that's not happening.