Bombardier, striking workers near a deal

Workers at Bombardier Transportation's Thunder Bay, Ontario facility are expected to vote Friday morning, Sept. 12, 2014, on an agreement that would end an eight-week strike, crippling the company's delivery of light rail transit and subway vehicles.

Members of Unifor Local 1075 began the strike on July 14, following a breakdown in contract talks with management, which failed to bridge a contract gap that began with the expiration of the previous contract, which expired May 31.

At issue were proposed changes by Bombardier to pensions and benefit packages, similar to what the company proposed in 2011, which triggered a brief strike at that time. Details of the new agreement, should it be ratified, are expected to be made public following its presumed approval.

A statement by Unifor Local President Dominic Fasqualino Thursday said, “These workers have stood up for good jobs in their community. Our fight against the employer’s concessions has shown the resolve of the membership to fight for fairness.”

The Toronto Transit Commission heralded the arrival last month of three Bombardier Flexity streetcars, delivered despite the strike. But industry observers said at that time the company would be unable to maintain on-time delivery of streetcar, light rail, and Toronto Rocket subway cars to Toronto, along with LRTs ordered by Ontario’s Waterloo Region, if the strike persisted.

https://www.railwayage.com/index.php/passenger/light-rail/waterloo-region-preps-for-lrt-construction.html