The City of Toronto warned on Friday that essential services, including child-care centres and March Break recreation programs, could shut down if a strike by 27,000 inside city workers occurs. The union representing these workers, CUPE Local 79, is demanding better wages and working conditions.
The City of Toronto announced on Friday that several family services, including 39 city-run child-care centres, will close if the union representing the city’s 27,000 inside workers decides to strike. City Manager Paul Johnson stated at a news conference that CUPE Local 79 members run programming at recreation centres, and if there is a labour disruption, nearly all of the city’s recreation centres will be closed, along with recreation programming.
This includes potentially the March Break camps and activities that are city-run and held at city facilities. The city says that refunds will be issued for any paid recreation programs and clients will not be charged for each day the city-run child-care centres remain closed. CUPE Local 79 President Nas Yadollahi said that the decision to shutter these facilities lies on the shoulders of the city. Yadollahi stressed that the union does not want to strike, stating, “We want to continue to do the work that we love, and we want to continue to care and serve the people of Toronto.” She urged parents concerned about the potential closure of childcare centres to contact their city councillors and City Hall to advocate for a fair contract for city workers and avoid job action. Yadollahi highlighted the union’s demands for fair wage increases that keep pace with inflation and reflect what other municipal workers have received. She emphasized that the increases they are fighting for are far from the raises awarded to city management. The union president also demanded an end to minimum wage jobs for inside city workers. The city assured that emergency response teams will not be impacted by the strike action, winter maintenance operations will continue as normal, and long-term care facilities and senior services will still operate. Florence Mwangi, a personal support worker with the city’s senior services and long-term care division, expressed concerns about the “unprecedented crisis in staffing” in these sectors. She pointed out a 687% increase in vacancies, with nearly 500 unfilled positions. This leaves remaining staff struggling to care for more residents with fewer workers, leading to exhaustion. Yadollahi found it “interesting” that the city’s main concern is that long-term care workers cannot strike. She called on the city to focus on addressing the retention and recruitment crisis in long-term care, which is directly impacting the most vulnerable residents of Toronto. The city’s bargaining team has been negotiating since December 2022 and states its commitment to reaching a new collective agreement. They claim to have offered a nearly 15% general wage increase over the next four years. Johnson stated they received a substantial proposal from the union late last night and are reviewing it, but the city requested to restart negotiations on Monday. However, they remain available for talks at any time
Toronto Strike Child-Care Recreation CUPE Union City Workers March Break
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