Back To Work Legislaion Favours Union

Back-to-work doesn't work for province

By JONATHAN JENKINS AND ANTONELLA ARTUSO, QUEEN'S PARK BUREAU

The threat of a legislated end to Toronto's now 12-day-old garbage strike is as empty as a city trash truck.

What little pressure there may have been on Premier Dalton McGuinty to bring Queen's Park back for an emergency session to end the strike evaporated yesterday, with both opposition parties expressing little interest in such a plan.

"First best solution is always to get a local solution, and I do again want to encourage fully the mayor and the bargaining team he has and from the union to get a deal done and to move forward," Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak said. "I think we always have to bear in mind, too, that any kind of settlement must always reflect the taxpayers' ability to pay."

And the PCs aren't the only ones showing no interest in resolving the impasse through the legislature.

"Public sector employers, including the City of Toronto, have become addicted to legislated solutions to their labour relations issues," New Democrat House Leader Peter Kormos said.

16-DAY STRIKE

"And I think it's important that the province signal once and for all that it is not going to be there with back-to-work legislation, that it expects municipalities to negotiate agreements with their employees."

The strike by 24,000 inside and outside workers in two separate unions has shuttered city-run daycares, pools and rec programs as well as putting an end to garbage collection.

A similar strike in 2002 was ended after 16 days when then Premier Ernie Eves introduced legislation ordering the two sides into arbitration.

The result was a deal that gave workers 3% annual wage hikes for three years and maintained a job security clause the city had tried to get rid of. There's been speculation the city is keen to avoid Queen's Park stepping in as an arbitrator would be unlikely to side with the employer on the key issue of banked sick days.

"The last strike we had they were ordered back and they went to arbitration and the union got exactly what they wanted," Councillor Case Ootes, who was deputy mayor at the time, said yesterday. "From the city's long-term perspective, it's not a great idea.

Premier Dalton McGuinty has already said he will rely on Toronto's medical officer of health Dr. David McKeown for advice on when the strike becomes a health hazard.