October 8th, 2008
TTC and union come to 3-year agreement
By Matthew Blackett // 11 Comments
This little piece of news just came screaming across Spacing's desk: the TTC and union workers have reached a deal, five full months after transit employees walked off the job in the wee hours of April 26, and we all know what happened thereafter. From the press release:
The Toronto Transit Commission, today, received arbitrator Kevin Burkett's decision on a binding three-year contract between the TTC and its unions, retroactive to April 1, 2008.
The settlement matches everything that was agreed to on April 20 this year, except for an additional $0.10 per hour increase for skilled trades workers. Wage increases will rise 3% in each year of the contract, which will expire on March 31, 2011. Benefit improvements and WSIB top-ups match what was agreed to, as well. The cost of the contract is estimated to be $164 million over the three-year life of the contract.
On April 20 of this year, the TTC and its unions agreed to a tentative contract, subject to ratification. On April 25, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 113 announced that the majority of voting members rejected the agreement. A legal strike was announced for midnight. On Sunday, April 27, the Ontario Legislature convened an emergency session and passed back-to-work legislation and announced both parties would be subject to binding arbitration. TTC service resumed by 5 p.m. April 27, ending the 1-½ day strike.
Since that time, the TTC met three times with Mr. Burkett, laying out its position with respect to affordability and other non-monetary issues. Mr. Burkett sought, and received, time extensions from both parties as he worked through the complex issues before him.
photo by Jacklyn Atlas
Interact
Sorry, comments are
closed at this time.
Rate this post
Loading ...
Comments
Neither the author nor Spacing necessarily agree with the comments posted below. Spacing reserves the right to edit or delete comments entirely. See our Comment Policy.
Guess I better get ready for another strike in 3 years.
By parroting the headline of the TTC press release, you got the story wrong.
The headline "TTC and union come to 3-year agreement" and intro ("TTC and union workers have reached a deal") are both incorrect and misleading. Both phrases imply that the TTC and its union agreed upon (i.e. negotiated) a settlement.
But, based on the actual text of the press release and the National Post, what actually happened was that the arbitrator finalized the details of 3-year contract between the TTC and the union. Neither side needed to agree: they were bound by law to accept it.
I don't expect "breaking news" coverage from Spacing, and I'd like to be able to expect a little better than simply passing along what the city says (or in some cases, what the mayor may want to say, but can't). Please, if you don't have time to give the city's press releases a critical eye, let them wait.
What happened to that "TTC drivers must be the highest paid in Ontario" clause?
Matt L -- I'd not have seen this news release had I not seen it here, yesterday. To an Industrial Relations fetishist such as yourself, sure, the wording might be off in the title, but to the rest of us it's simply a deal between the union and the city.
Matt L. is absolutly right Matthew Blackett....do NOT print stuff that is NOT true...THIS is why I tend to NOT believe everything I read online OR the newspapers...
Rob G: it is true. the wording is a little off. relax.
Matt L: you are correct on the wording and I regret the error. But I also believe there is nothing wrong with putting up a press release to quickly get the information out there. More care could have been taken, I agree.
But I take issue with the comment: "I’d like to be able to expect a little better than simply passing along what the city says (or in some cases, what the mayor may want to say, but can’t)."
I'm disappointed that you are implying we are puppets of the mayors office. We are often critical of his decisions but we are also not afraid to agree when we like certain decisions. I hope that doesn't get confused with being a parrot. You'll rarely find columnists that say ANYTHING positive about City Hall even if they agree, which i think is weak journalism. For the most part, this blog is full of columnists and we express our own opinions, not those of any politician.
Matt, thanks for the reply. I'm definitely not advocating knee-jerk negativity -- it's good that Spacing is optimistic about the city and yes, that means its writers will agree with the mayor much of the time. But I think the perception is out there some posts cross the line into echoing the mayor's position (e.g. just a couple posts back, someone else commented "The Mayor can issue his own press releases"). I didn't expect you to agree with that perception. 
I'm just saying that passing along press releases might increase the risk of being seen that way.
Some might accuse me of not being entirely objective here, but the news release issued by the TTC on Wednesday was pure news. It contained only facts, with the sole objective of letting the public know that a binding agreement was now in place with our unions.
Copying and pasting the salient points of a news release that contains actual news doesn't compromise journalistic integrity.
As an aside, it should be noted that Spacing opted not to use the TTC boiler plate that is common at the end of most news releases we issue.
Brad Ross
Director, Corporate Communciations
Toronto Transit Commission
I am actually glad that for once the union did not get everything that it wanted. This follows news of the ratification of the deal that VIVA drivers initially turned down and went on a sudden strike over. All in all, it gives me a little bit of reassurance that there is a bit of fairness in the world and that the actions of ATU 113 would not be taken lightly.
On a non-political point, where is the picture taken? I have a bet with a friend of mine, he says St. Clair West, south entrance. I'm thinking Davisville, Main Entrance.
Fare hikes for celebration! hip hip hurrah!
Comment by Will
October 8, 2008 | 4:43 pm