The YRT/Viva Strike
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Free transit service will return strike savings to riders
Regional Council to invest strike savings in customer incentives for riders at end of labour dispute
NEWMARKET — York Regional Council today approved an incentive plan that returns YRT/Viva strike savings to riders at the end of the current strike, recognizing the personal and financial hardships commuters have endured during this dispute.
Approximately $5,169,000 accumulated by the Region from not paying contractors during the strike will cover the cost of one month of free service for all when YRT/Viva service resumes. Any additional savings from today forward will also be directed back to riders.
“Every dollar we have saved to date and until the end of the strike will be returned to riders to offset the personal losses of those deeply impacted by this strike,” said York Region Chairman and CEO Bill Fisch. “Regional Council continues to challenge the unions and contractors, who have met only once in eight weeks, to resolve their dispute, return service and put to rest the hardship endured by all over the past two months.”
York Region anticipates up to a 10-per cent reduction in ridership following the strike and will offer this free service incentive to welcome back existing riders, invite new riders and ease relations between riders and bus operators going forward. The impact of a ridership loss of 10 per cent for an entire year compared to the 2012 budget target of 22.5 million riders would be approximately $6.1 million.
“Every day the YRT/Viva strike continues, we potentially lose another loyal rider,” said Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville Mayor Wayne Emmerson, Chair of the Region’s Transportation Services Committee. “Customer incentives will be offered to all riders – those left entirely without service during the strike, as well as those who faced significant delays and inconvenience due to picketing on remaining service.”
Earlier this month, York Regional Council stated emphatically it will not intervene in the current dispute between the contractors and unions, will not request back-to-work provincial legislation or endorse binding arbitration. Committing to any of these could lead to extraordinary tax rate increases for all regional residents, higher transit fares for commuters, or both. York Region has finalized fair contracts with its private contractors and will not reopen them at a risk of up to $40 million in additional transit costs for taxpayers and riders.
Today marks day 53 of the YRT/Viva strike, affecting 60 per cent of transit service in York Region. Contracted operators Miller Transit, First Canada and York BRT Services (Veolia Transportation) met briefly with ATU Local 1587 and 113 over the past week, marking the first and only meaningful negotiations between the parties since the strike began Monday, October 24.
YRT/Viva contracted operators reaching out to resume labour negotiations
Movement toward negotiations follows York Regional Council’s announcement to not request provincial legislation to end the dispute
NEWMARKET – The Regional Municipality of York has been advised that contracted operators Veolia Transportation, Miller Transit and First Canada are prepared to meet with ATU Local 1587 and Local 113 regarding the resumption of negotiations in the ongoing YRT/Viva strike.
Contracted operators have, or are in the process of, reaching out to union representatives.
The movement toward negotiations follows a York Region press conference last week where Chairman and CEO Bill Fisch stated York Regional Council will not request back to work legislation from the provincial government, and called for the immediate restoration of transit service and a return to negotiations between the Region’s three contractors and two unions.
“We are encouraged that YRT/Viva contracted operators are prepared to meet with the unions to resume negotiations,” said York Region Chairman and CEO Bill Fisch. “Neither back-to-work legislation or arbitration are an acceptable answer to a refusal to negotiate. We hold our contractors responsible for negotiating a fair and reasonable contract with their employees and we expect the union to resume negotiations in good faith, for the benefit of their membership and the riders they serve.”
Regional Council will not intervene in the current dispute between the contractors and unions and will not become involved in any negotiations, which could lead to extraordinary tax rate increases for all regional residents, higher transit fares for commuters, or both.
Potential costs to York Region taxpayers would be as much as $10 million each year or up to $40 million in the life of the transit contracts. This would result in either a $26 annual increase to property taxes for every average household or a 45-cent fare increase for transit riders in addition to the fare increase scheduled for January 1, 2012.
Regional Council continues to insist on a return to negotiations using previously appointed mediators and an immediate restoration of service.
“We are now in week seven of the YRT/Viva strike,” added Chairman Fisch. “For the sake of our residents, families and businesses who continue to be the unfortunate victims of this strike, we hope to see an immediate return of transit service as negotiations resume.”
Media Contact: Patrick Casey, Director, Corporate Communications, York Region
1-877-464-9675, ext. 1235 • Cell: 905-715-8211 Patrick.casey@york.ca
David Dunlop Defenders support Region's Position on Transit Strike
BREAKING NEWS:
Regional Chair Bill Fisch and members of YR Regional Council held a press conference this morning:
http://www.yorkregion.com/news/article/1255875--update-region-won-t-intervene
“This is no longer a labour dispute. It's an attack on how we govern our community,” he said, accusing the unions of using riders and drivers to undermine the region's privatization of transit.. The unions have turned on the very people they're asking to foot the bills. (The unions) are using the drivers as pawns and the guy making $11 an hour as a pawn. Well said, Mr. Chair.
“On behalf of our residents, I'm quite angry,” he said, highlighting the fact the unions and contractors have held just one meeting during the strike.
“At least talk. For six weeks, no one has said a word,” Bill Fisch said.
Time for public pressure to be brought to bear where it is most deserved - the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1587, its president, Ray Doyle, and related committee members:
http://atu1587.ca/committees/
http://atu1587.ca/contact.html
I feel for the drivers concerns and issues too, but enough is enough - it's the public who is suffering here, time for this union to make a decision in favour of said public. We are, after all, the ones most affected and the ones who drive this mass transit system which services millions. We have a voice too and that voice needs to be heard very loud and very very clear.
YRT/Viva Strike Summary – Day 40
Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1587 and Local 113 members employed by YRT/Viva contracted operators Miller Transit, First Canada and York BRT Services withdrew transit service Monday, October 24, 2011, impacting 60 per cent of service and 44,000 riders daily. Now 40 days into this dispute, the suffering of York Region residents is very apparent and must end through an immediate restoration of service and return to negotiations by the unions and contracted operators.
York Region wants a fair and just resolution to this dispute for all parties involved – including the taxpayers and transit riders who fund YRT/Viva service. For this reason, York Regional Council will not request the Provincial Government to enact back-to-work legislation or support arbitration as a means to end the current YRT/Viva labour dispute. Neither is an acceptable answer to a refusal to bargain, and both have potentially serious financial consequences.
To achieve wage parity with TTC and Brampton, systems that have significantly longer service histories than ours, would require an additional York Region investment of $10 million dollars. The reality of the union’s current wage demands would mean a $26 annual increase for every typical York Region taxpayer or an additional 45-cent fare increase for transit riders. We are not prepared to ask this of our residents, nor should we have to. York Regional Council will not support a resolution to this dispute at the expense of taxpayers and riders
In 2011, York Region directed $180 million to public transit; our second largest budget item next to York Regional Police. Over 19 million riders used YRT/Viva services in 2010, with an average of 73,000 boardings made each weekday. Through fares, riders pay for only about 37 per cent of the cost of providing YRT/Viva service. Taxes are used to subsidize the remaining 63 per cent at a cost of about $340 a year per household. Most public transit systems are highly subsidized as a direct result of the high costs of providing the service.
York Region has chosen a privatized model in the best interest of our taxpayers and transit riders, and we have charged our private contractors with all matters related to wages and benefits. We continue to stand by this model as it has served us well for more than 30 years. We could not provide a publicly-owned alternative for better value for our constituents. Public or private, unionized employees have the right to strike, and a change in business model would not offer protection against future strikes for our residents. We are facing only our second labour dispute in York Region. Some GTA peers have far more strikes in their histories than York Region.
Despite this rational stance and our ongoing efforts to support YRT/Viva riders and the community wherever possible, the unions have spent a great deal of time placing the blame on York Region and the Region’s transit business model. York Regional Council maintains there is room to negotiate a fair deal on both the part of the unions and the contracted operators. The unions have now publicly stated they seek wage improvements, and not parity with GTA counterparts and contractors have offered substantial increases that remain ignored. Refusal to negotiate is the issue at hand.
Private Contractor Offers |
Union Counteroffer |
York BRT Services (Viva)
|
ATU Local 113
|
Miller Transit (Southeast Division)
|
ATU Local 1587
|
We are interested in a fair deal for all concerned in this dispute – particularly the riders, residents, families and businesses who have become the unfortunate victims of this dispute.
YRT/Viva strike Q&A
What is York Region’s position on the YRT/Viva strike?
- Since the transit strike began on October 24, York Region has endorsed any means of the unions and contractors reaching an agreement, including agreeing to resume transit service immediately while all parties conduct meaningful negotiations in a manner that respects the interests of employees, transit riders and taxpayers.
- York Region strongly believes the best solution to this labour dispute is for York Region-contracted transit operators and their unionized employees to negotiate in good faith – with the assistance of a mediator, if required – to reach a fair and equitable agreement and restore full transit service.
- The strike has caused great hardship on 44,000 riders daily. Over 19 million riders used YRT/Viva services in 2010, with an average of 73,000 boardings made each weekday.
Why is the Region not asking the Government of Ontario to enact “Back to Work” legislation or support binding arbitration?
- York Region and its municipalities have successfully operated transit for more than 30 years using a private contractor model. This model has proven to be reliable in delivering a high level of service at a competitive price.
- A key element in this success is that workers have the means to negotiate contracts with individual service providers, independent of the Region’s involvement.
- Should the Region be drawn into this private labour dispute between contractors and their employees, the success of this model effectively breaks down, at a cost to each and every resident in York Region.
- The contractors have tabled substantial offers that provide increases in wages and benefits. These offers have not been considered by the unions.
- Binding arbitration typically follows protracted and unsuccessful negotiations where multiple offers and counteroffers have been presented. This is not evident in the current labour dispute.
- In 2011, York Region directed $180 million to public transit; our second largest budget item next to York Regional Police.
- YRT/Viva recovers less than 40 per cent of the costs of public transit through the fare box. The remaining costs are subsidized for typical taxpayers at a cost of approximately $340 per household.
- The reality of the union’s current wage demands would mean a $26 annual increase for every typical York Region taxpayer or an additional 45-cent fare increase for transit riders.
- To achieve wage parity with TTC and Brampton, systems that have significantly longer service histories than ours would require an additional York Region investment of $10 million dollars.
- Any wage increase mandated through binding arbitration will result in higher taxes for York Region households, higher fare rates for riders, or both.
What offers are on the table?
Private Contractor Offers |
Union Counteroffer |
York BRT Services (Viva)
|
ATU Local 113
|
Miller Transit (Southeast Division)
|
ATU Local 1587
|
Why is York Region making a public statement now?
- For more than 30 years, collective bargaining has consistently proven to be the most effective tool for York Region-contracted service providers and their employees to come to mutually acceptable agreements that provide cost-competitive, reliable transit service.
- York Region respects the collective bargaining process and the legal right of employees to strike against their employer.
- Throughout the strike, the Region has strongly encouraged our contractors and the unions to engage in meaningful negotiations.
- The Region has consistently maintained the position that negotiation directly between the two parties is the best means for both sides to come to a mutually-acceptable agreement. This position was relayed in writing to both unions on November 10 and to the unions and operators on November 16. Further, this position was openly stated to union leadership and its members at York Regional Council on November 17.
- Despite our best efforts at encouraging negotiations to resume, this has not occurred.
- In the absence of negotiations, York Regional Council met on December 1 at a Special Meeting of Council to discuss the best way to move forward.
- Following this discussion, York Regional Council endorsed a position that we will not request a call for Back to Work legislation from the Provincial Government or binding arbitration.
Why is transit not considered an “essential” service such as the TTC?
- Essential Services are typically defined as those dedicated to the safeguarding of human health and safety, such as first responders from police, fire, hospital and long-term care facility workers. Unionized employees in these fields cannot withdraw service through strike action.
- The Government of Ontario made a rare and unprecedented move to prohibit the right to strike of transit workers by designating the TTC an essential service in March 2011.
- The province recognized the “unique impact that (TTC) transit service has on the city's economic well-being" as the largest transit provider in Canada, serving the City of Toronto, considered the economic hub of the country.
- The province noted considerations around this rare designation as daily ridership of 1.5 million commuters (more than the entire population of York Region) and an estimated daily economic impact of $50 million a day.
Back-to-Work Legislation
- Back to Work legislation is a special law passed by government ordering an end to a labour dispute.
- This legislation is generally used to end a lengthy strike in an industry where the government deems the work stoppage detrimental to the operating of the economy, or in circumstances where health and safety concerns or other serious public interest factors are involved.
- Where Back to Work legislation is enacted, it is common for the government to engage the parties in interest arbitration to resolve the negotiation impasse.
Media Coverage of the VIVA/YRT Transit Strike
Toronto Star: York Region won’t move on transit strike
York Region commuters and transit workers can forget about their regional government ending a six-week-old strike, says York Region Chair Bill Fisch.
His remarks to the media Friday are almost certain to inflame the increasingly tense labour situation.
Fisch insisted he’s not taking sides in the dispute between York’s three contracted bus companies and their employees. But he accused the unions of “imposing a great deal of hardship on the ridership and community they serve.
“Quite frankly, I think the union’s been waiting for us to intervene, and we’re not going to intervene,” he said.
The unions and employers — Veolia Transport, First Canada and Miller Transit — must negotiate contracts, he said. The region does not support an arbitrated settlement or back-to-work legislation.
“The reality of the union’s current wage demands would mean a $26 annual increase for the typical York Region property taxpayer or an additional 45 cent fare increase for transit riders,” said Fisch.
Regional council has approved a 25 cent fare increase to $3.50 in January.
Although the unions won’t discuss their wage demands, the region says they’re looking for a 20 per cent increase. It says the company offers range from 5 per cent to 13 per cent with varying contract terms.
“Pickets will escalate, whether that means more days per week or more picket lines per day,” said Ray Doyle, head of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1587.
York Region bus drivers make about $7 an hour less on average than operators in other area transit systems. But they’re not looking for parity with the TTC and others, said Bob Kinnear, president of ATU Local 113.
“We’re not in that ballpark. We’re definitely looking for improvements to the working conditions and the benefits,” he said.
“We have bus operators that have no entitlement to sick days but have to work a 15- to 16-hour spread in a day,” said Kinnear, who represents the Veolia workers.
York spent $180 million on public transit last year. Its buses recover only 37 per cent of their operating costs from the fare box.
“In Toronto the subsidy rates are about $430 million on an annual basis and we carry 12 times the number of people. Where’s the money going (in York)? It’s not going to the employees,” said Kinnear.
Fisch said the subsidy is so high because the system is young. It must carry 40 million to 60 million people a year, rather than the 20 million it currently serves.
YRMG: Region won't intervene
York Region reaffirmed today it has no plans to intervene in the 40-day-old regional transit strike.
York Region council will not call on the provincial government to enact back-to-work legislation or support arbitration to end the walkout, regional chairperson Bill Fisch said during a news conference this morning.
Council is sending a clear and strong message to the region’s contracted operators — Miller Transit, First Canada and York BRT Services — and ATU Local 1587 and ATU Local 113 thy need to negotiate a settlement.
If the region became involved in negotiations, it could lead to extraordinary tax rate increases and higher transit fares, Mr. Fisch said.
Council continues to insist on a return to negotiations using previously appointed mediators and an immediate restoration of service.
Members of the region's transportation committee spent 90 minutes Wednesday discussing the strike in a closed session.
At least one more in-camera council meeting took place yesterday regarding the work stoppage that is now in its 40th day.
From the outset, council’s position has been the dispute is between the two unions and three private contractors against whom they are striking.
Mr. Fisch’s language has become stronger, however. Last week he accused the 500 striking transit workers of holding York Region residents hostage.
A private member’s bill aimed at getting the buses on the road and the parties to arbitration was introduced by Thornhill MPP Peter Shurman last week, but failed to pass second reading in the legislature.
After today, Queen’s Park closes until February, meaning an emergency session would be required for any back-to-work legislation to be passed.
While YRT service continues as normal in the southwest, only 40 per cent of the system is operating, leaving 40,000 riders high and dry.
Before the strike, the transit service was on pace for a record 21.8 million riders this year.
Toronto Sun: York Region won’t intervene in transit strike
NEWMARKET - York Regional Council is refusing to ask the province for back-to-work legislation to end the YRT and Viva transit labour dispute.
“York Region wants a fair deal for bus drivers and mechanics but not at the expense of taxpayers,” chairman Bill Fisch said Friday.
“The reality of the unions current wage demands would mean a $26 annual increase for the typical York Region property taxpayer, or an additional 45-cent fare increase for transit riders.”
About 600 transit workers — represented by the Amalgamated Transit Union — walked off the job on Oct. 24, forcing about 50,000 people to find alternative transit options.
Throughout the strike transit workers have been holding picket lines, which have delayed York Region buses operated by private companies from leaving garages for their routes.
The ATU wanted the private companies contracted to drive buses in York Region to go to arbitration to end the strike.
The union says it is willing to go back to the negotiating table but wants its employees to have wages similar to TTC employees.
CTV. ca: York Region will not intervene in transit strike
The Region of York said it would not get involved in the ongoing transit strike, calling for York Region Transit and the unions resume negotiations six weeks after workers walked off the job.
York Region chairman and CEO Bill Fisch told a news conference on Friday that striking employees should return to work as the two sides negotiated a new contract.
"It is time for them to talk. Quite frankly it is the only way they can negotiate and get this thing done," Fisch said. "Go back to the table, get the drivers back working and get our residents back where they should be. Negotiate a fair deal for all parties."
He added that he would not call on the province to force an end to the strike and would not fund union demands.
About 560 drivers and mechanics from York Region Transit and Viva walked off the job on Oct. 24 over wages, halting service on a good portion of the routes in the region directly north of Toronto.
The members of Amalgamated Transit Union locals 1587 and 113 have been forming picket lines and occasionally delaying the region's remaining buses in recent weeks.
An estimated 60 per cent of the transit system in York Region is affected, mainly in Markham, Richmond Hill, Newmarket, and Aurora. Some 44,000 passengers are affected by the dispute.
York Regional Transit was warning commuters on Friday to expect delays due to picketing outside maintenance facilities and GO Transit properties.
Globe and Mail: York Region urges contractors, unions in transit strike to resume talks
The chairman of York Region is calling for the two sides in the region's transit strike to resume negotiations, and for employees to return to work while talks take place.
Bill Fisch told a news conference the region will not call on the province to force an end to the strike.
Mr. Fisch adds the region will not fund union demands.
He says to do so would mean an average $26 tax hike or 45 cent fare increase.
The strike, which started Oct. 24, has idled 60 per cent of transit service in the region and affects 44,000 commuters each day.
The striking workers are represented by two different unions and work for three separate subcontractors.
680News: York Region says it will not intervene in transit strike
There will be no quick and easy solution to York Yegion's transit strike.
The regional council announced Friday it will not intervene in the dispute between the transit drivers and the private companies who operate the system.
Instead, council is calling on the two sides to get back to the bargaining table.
York Region chair Bill Fisch, who was joined by members of York council for the news conference at the regional headquarters in Newmarket, said it's time to end the dispute.
"We're not negotiating [...] the contractors and the unions need to get together, have a little discussion. There are offers on the table that have not been reviewed, and our position is that they need to go back to the table, get their drivers back to work, where I'm sure they want to be, and start negotiating," Fisch said.
"There have not been any discussions in six weeks of this strike between the contractors and the unions. It's time for that to happen," he added.
The strike, which started Oct. 24, has idled 60 per cent of transit service in the region and affects 44,000 people each day.
CityNews: York Region won’t intervene to end transit strike
York Region won’t ask the province to introduce back-to-work legislation to end the six-week-old transit strike.
Chairman and CEO Bill Fisch is demanding that the Amalgamated Transit Union and the companies contracted to operate buses in the region return to the bargaining table. He says there have been no meaningful talks since the strike began.
Workers walked off the job Oct. 24.
CP24: York Region says it will not intervene in YRT strike
York Region will not intervene in the labour dispute that has halted much of the region's public transit for more than a month.
At a council meeting today, the board decided it would not go to the province and seek back-to-work legislation that would mandate York Region Transit workers back on the job.
Council members have been calling on the unions and employers involved in the York Region Transit labour dispute to bring an end to the strike, which began when bus drivers and mechanics walked off the job Oct. 24.
"Neither back to work legislation or arbitration is an acceptable answer to a refusal to negotiate," York Region chairman and CEO Bill Fisch told reporters. "The answer and the most reasonable way for this to end is for the parties to participate in meaningful negotiations."
The strike has halted service on about 60 per cent of YRT's routes, angering riders who rely on public transit to get around.
The main sticking point has been pay. YRT bus drivers earn an average of $20 per hour, and they want to be paid the same as their counterparts in Toronto, Hamilton, Brampton and Mississauga, where drivers are paid an average of $29.
"If York region intervenes the reality of the unions current wage demands would mean a $26 increase for every York Region taxpayer or it would mean an additional 40 cent fare hike for York Region Transit riders," Fisch told reporters. "We are not prepared to ask taxpayers to do that nor should we have to."
Following Fisch's news conference Ray Doyle, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1587, told CP24 that it is "ridiculous" to suggest taxpayers would automatically have to foot the bill for a wage increase for drivers.
"They are trying to indicate to the public that if they do get involved that it will automatically mean taxpayers will have to pay higher taxes." he said. "We feel there is sufficient money already being pumped into this transit system to allow for a fair and reasonable wage increase."
The workers are employed by Miller Transit and First Canada, and are represented by two Amalgamated Transit Union locals.
YRT contracts Miller Transit to provide service to 51 bus routes in the southeast division, which covers Markham, Richmond Hill, Whitchurch-Stouffville and part of Vaughan.
First Canada has a contract to provide bus service for 29 routes in Newmarket, Aurora and parts of Richmond Hill, East Gwillimbury and Georgina.
"This is no longer about a labour dispute; it is an attack on how we govern our communities," Fisch said in response to the unions contention that contracting out transit is the real issue.
About 340 employees in the southeast and north divisions are represented by ATU Local 1587, while about 220 Viva employees are represented by ATU Local 113