Last-minute snag means strike continues in Black River-Matheson
Negotiations in Black River-Matheson nearly led to a deal last week, with the resumption of bargaining talks, where members of CUPE Local 1490 are still on strike.
Union leaders said a condition for a deal to end the six-month-old dispute was for all sides to cease legal action against each other, but that caused another stalemate.
In a news release last week, the township said it agreed to give unionized workers a 14 per cent pay bump over four years, a union-approved wage grid and better vacation time.
The parties seemed ready to sign -- until the union proposed a back-to-work protocol.
“It provides a protection, for all of our members going back to work, that there will be no reprisals for anything that arose during the lockout or strike,” said CUPE’s Serge Bouchard.
“It gives them at least a comfort, going back to work, not having to look over their shoulders and let’s just start moving forward.”
Bouchard said the protocol would also see both parties drop their legal actions against each other.
The union applied for a judicial review of the township’s conduct, claiming it violated Charter rights in February by banning CUPE members from town facilities.
Meanwhile, the township hired an investigator to determine whether union members have been displaying threatening and harmful behaviour.
Unwilling to call off the investigation, the town rejected the back-to-work protocol but stands by the settlement. It’s now appealing to the Ontario Labour Relations Board to order both parties to sign the deal.
Mayor Doug Bender released a statement that said members are welcome to return to work.
“We have also indicated that if the (Ontario Labour Relations Board) changes something on May 4, the township will act accordingly,” Bender said.
“There is now no good reason for the union to delay the return to work.”
But Bouchard said all issues should be cleared up first.
“We’ll save a pile of money on legal fees, on both sides, and it’s an avenue to start working together,” he said.
“Without this, they may try to terminate or discipline people for their involvement in the picket line and that’s just not something that we’re willing to subject our people to.”
In response, the township said the collective agreement already addresses reprisal and harassment of employees.
We attempted to reach Bender for further comment but he was unavailable and the town’s CAO did not respond.
Meantime, around a dozen members are still on strike. Three workers have crossed the picket line and are awaiting penalty from the union.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6978861.1722008569!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
At least 4 buildings burned at Jasper Park Lodge, others damaged: Fairmont memo
The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge said Thursday afternoon most of its structures are 'standing and intact,' including its iconic main lodge.
Major Canadian bank experiences direct deposit outage on payday
Scotiabank says it has fixed a technical issue that impacted direct deposits on Friday morning.
'He was just gone': Police ramp up search for vulnerable 3-year-old boy in Mississauga, Ont.
Police in Mississauga are conducting a full-scale search of the city’s biggest park for a non-verbal toddler who went missing Thursday evening. Sgt. Jennifer Trimble told reporters Friday morning that there has been no trace of three-year-old Zaid Abdullah since 6:20 p.m., when he was last seen with his parents in Erindale Park, near Dundas Street West and Mississauga Road.
Sask. appeal court says anti-trans group cannot join constitutional dispute over pronoun law
Saskatchewan’s Court of Appeal has denied a political group that opposes so-called “gender ideology” intervener status in a legal dispute over the province’s controversial pronoun law.
Justin Timberlake's attorney disputes he was intoxicated when arrested for DWI
A hearing in the case of Justin Timberlake being accused of driving while intoxicated was held Friday, where an attorney for the singer disputed his arrest in June.
Elon Musk's estranged daughter calls out his 'entirely fake' claims about her childhood
Vivian Jenna Wilson, Elon Musk's estranged daughter, publicly refuted several recent anti-trans statements her Tesla CEO and X owner father has made about her.
What we know about 'malicious' attack on French train network ahead of Olympics opening
French transport was thrust into chaos Friday just hours ahead of the Olympics 2024 opening ceremony after a series of co-ordinated 'malicious acts' upended high-speed train lines.Here's what happened and what we know so far.
Harvey Weinstein in hospital after testing positive for COVID-19 and contracting double pneumonia
Disgraced and imprisoned movie mogul Harvey Weinstein 'tested positive for COVID and contracted double pneumonia in his lungs,' Juda Engelmayer, Weinstein’s spokesman, said in a statement Thursday.
Reported rate of child pornography increased 52% in 2023, total crime up 3%: Statistics Canada
Last year, reported child pornography cases increased by more than 50 per cent in Canada, in part due to more cases being sent to police by specialized internet child exploitation units, according to a Statistics Canada report.