Another nail has been hammered in the coffin of plans to declare the TTC an essential service, after the city council's executive committee voted 8-1 in favour of keeping things as they are Tuesday night.
While the issue will still go to a vote at city council, TTC Chair and Ward 18 Councillor Adam Giambrone tells CP24.com that it's highly unlikely the idea will survive.
Giambrone also says declaring the TTC an essential service would drive up operating costs, and there would be no guarantee that TTC employees would not go on strike.
He cites examples from other cities, such as New York and Montreal, where transit has been declared and essential service yet operators still walked off the job.
"It can't prevent illegal strikes because, well, they're illegal," he says.
Millions of dollars per year would be added to the commission's operating budget since an arbitrator would be needed to negotiate contracts, and studies show those settlements usually wind up offering a premium to workers, says Giambrone.
"Because they give up their democratic right (to strike), they're somewhat entitled to some sort of compensation," he says, citing case law and generally-accepted notions.
The TTC went on strike in April after union president Bob Kinnear verbally promised a 48-hour warning of such action. Transit riders were given about two hours notice before the two-day strike started, stranding thousands of people.
The union agreed on a new contract today after months of arbitration.
The new contract is the same as the one agreed upon in April, with one exception. The arbitrator decided that skilled trades labourers will receive a raise of 10 cents per hour, while the union asked for a 25 cent per hour raise.
