Mon, 14 Feb 2022
The Town of Oakville and Oakville Transit union Unifor Local 1256, which represents Oakville Transit drivers and maintenance workers, have been negotiating a new collective agreement to reach a fair and balanced settlement. However, after reaching a tentative agreement last week, the union notified the town Sunday night that the settlement was not ratified by its members and have given notice of strike action as of 5 a.m., Thursday, February 17, 2022.
There will be no regular bus service or Home to Hub service as of Thursday morning. Oakville Transit’s specialized care-A-van service will continue to operate for dialysis appointments only.
The Collective Agreement with Unifor Local 1256 expired on January 31, 2022. It is not unusual for labour negotiations to continue past the expiry of a collective agreement, and contract negotiations between the town and the union had been ongoing.
The union and the town’s bargaining teams reached a tentative settlement on February 8. The tentative settlement was recommended to the members by the union’s bargaining team, however union members unexpectedly rejected this settlement in a ratification vote on February 13, and have indicated that strike action will begin on Thursday.
The town appreciates everyone’s patience and cooperation during this time.
For updates, visit the Oakville Transit website, the Town of Oakville website and follow @townofoakville or @oakvilletransit on Twitter and Town of Oakville or Oakville Transit on Facebook.
“We are extremely disappointed that Unifor members have turned down a fair and reasonable settlement after bargaining in good faith, and left just 72 hours to let the public know about a strike. The town remains prepared to meet with the union to reach a resolution and get Oakville Transit services back on the road.”
Phoebe Fu, Commissioner, Community Infrastructure.