THUNDER BAY — About 550 workers for the City of Thunder Bay have given their union's bargaining team the mandate to call a strike.
Members of CUPE Local 87 voted 98 per cent in favour of a walkout if it proves necessary to achieve a satisfactory collective agreement with the city.
The workers are employed in a wide variety of capacities including garbage collection, park maintenance, roads, sewer and waterworks.
President Deryk Fournier said the previous deal expired almost a year ago.
For now, he said, the union hopes the conciliator it's applied for will bring the two parties to an agreement, but CUPE is prepared to set a strike deadline if conciliation fails.
Fournier said there would be no strike, in any case, until the New Year.
Wages are a key issue on the table.
"I think everybody in the membership understands that, you know, it's hard out there right now, and management has given themselves substantial wages," he said. "The workers need the same, we need to be able to afford groceries and all the things that life throws at you."
City council approved pay adjustments for management and non-union staff last year.
Fournier added, "There's also some changes on the table that they're trying to get that, you know, really affect people and their work-life balance," but he declined to discuss specifics.
City Manager Norm Gale issued a brief statement in response to an inquiry from TBnewswatch.
The statement said "The parties continue to work towards a negotiated settlement, and we will work together with the conciliator appointed by the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development."
