Not surprising from the Post, but interesting (and encouraging based on my views) none the less.
Toronto on strike: Mayor faces backlash at City Hall over deal
Allison Hanes, National Post
Published: Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Hopes for an imminent end to the labour disruption were dashed on Wednesday as one union called off a ratification vote, the other refused to return to work in solidarity, councillors went into open revolt over the terms of the contract and Mayor David Miller desperately tried to sell the deal forged with the striking workers to a skeptical public.
The Mayor faced a political backlash at City Hall - which one councillor compared to his 2007 battle over new taxes - as it became clear the new collective agreement still contained its most controversial provision: a sick-day bank. Existing employees can continue to bank up to 18 sick days a year and cash them out for up to six months' paid leave when they retire.
New hires will move to a reformed illness and injury plan while current employees can also choose to switch over. If they opt out, they can either take a pay-out now or freeze their banked time and use it or cash out at retirement.
The Mayor insisted this clause is consistent with the city's bargaining goals.
"The sick bank has been eliminated in a way that's fair to the current workers, but it's gone," the embattled Mayor insisted to a reporter at City Hall. "This is a very strong achievement."
Challenged, during a testy exchange with the media, on the Orwellian nature of his assertion, the Mayor replied: "With great respect, I don't think this is doublespeak."
The new contract also includes wage increases of 1.75% in 2009, 2% in 2010, 2.25% in 2012, which the city's non-union employees have called a slap in the face. Those workers, who kept the city going through the strike, were stripped of their cost-of-living increases and bonuses this year as an austerity measure.
Councillors were outraged at the details of the tentative agreement.
"The Mayor caved in and he betrayed Torontonians and he let them down," said Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong (Don Valley East).
"I cannot vote for this agreement. The No. 1 thing that I'm getting calls about from my residents and getting emails and phone calls from all across the city is you cannot give in on sick bank days and that is the No. 1 thing that we were supposed to do."
Everyone thought the strike was ending, with both unions set to vote yesterday on the deal. But CUPE Local 416 leader Mark Ferguson shocked the city when he called off a ratification vote, saying, "There are still outstanding issues that the city has yet to address." His union then spent the day locked in a basement room at the Delta hotel in Scarborough, refusing to speak to a throng of reporters. Last night, there were no reports of progress.
One union leader said the strikers are seeking an amnesty for members who violated the law during the strike. The union is also furious that the city wants to bring in non-union contractors to help with the post-strike cleanup.
Local 79, the city's inside workers, voted in favour of the contract offer yesterday. Last night, the city said inside workers could return to work at midnight yesterday. But Local 79 was directing workers back onto picket lines today. Their leader, Ann Dembinski, had suggested earlier in the day that her members would not go back to work until Local 416 takes a vote.
Meanwhile, even if the strike wins the workers' approval, Mr. Miller still needs 23 votes at City Council to ink the deal. The Mayor has called a special council meeting for Friday morning to "consider" the agreement.
Several councillors said they are being inundated with angry emails from constituents urging them to vote against the collective agreement.
Councillor Karen Stintz (Eglinton Lawrence) said the public expected the Mayor to hold the line on reforming the sick-day bank for indoor and outdoor workers, which represents $140-million of a $250-million liability on the city's books.
"He told us he was going to get rid of the liability, he didn't. He told us he was going to get rid of the sick bank, he didn't. He told us he was going to have wage increases in line with inflation, they're not," Ms. Stintz said. "We sustained a five-week strike and nobody knows why."
Councillor Cliff Jenkins (Don Valley West), a member of the employee and labour relations committee which set the city's bargaining position, said that even three weeks ago the Mayor was determined to end the sick bank completely and buy out all employees.
"It's really bizarre that he's going to ask council to approve something he himself opposed just a few days ago," Mr. Jenkins said.
While the tentative agreement includes a grandfathering clause that will still allow employees to bank more sick time, Mr. Miller insisted it will save the city "millions and millions and tens of millions of dollars" in the long run.
"Over time our liability will go down. This is a very significant liability. We have capped it with management in a slightly different way, we've now essentially capped it with the unions and that was our goal," the Mayor said. "Short-term disability doesn't create a liability like that."
Exactly how much the city will save could depend on how many existing employees make the switch to the new plan. Ms. Dembinski yesterday urged her members to stay on the current plan.
With 11th-hour doubt cast on the resolution of the strike, unions flexing their muscle and the Mayor embattled, councillor John Parker (Don Valley West) quipped: "You have to wonder who's in charge, the people or the unions."
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Two related polls that I came across, the first from today's Toronto Star and the second from the Globe & Mail
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........And what the hell is grandparenting?
