STM will be fully operational this weekend, after a last-minute agreement ‘in principle’ was reached Friday night between management and the union representing 4,500 bus drivers and metro operators.
This means that the STM will be in service as normal Saturday and Sunday.
“After seven days of intensive negotiations, Local 1983 of the Canadian representing 4,500 bus drivers, metro operators, station agents, and paratransit drivers of the Société de transport de Montréal (STM) announced that a tentative agreement had finally been reached with the employer at around 7 p.m. this evening. This tentative agreement avoids the strike planned for Nov. 15 and 16,” said the SCFP 1983 union in a press release.
“Our goal was to reach a negotiated agreement, and we have achieved that. Now it will be up to the members to vote on the agreement through the democratic structures provided for in our bylaws and regulations,” said Frederic Therrien, president of CUPE Local 1983.
“We have reached a tentative agreement that includes compromises on all sides and, most importantly, respects the established financial framework,” said Marie-Claude Léonard, Chief Executive Officer of the STM. “I want to thank all the teams for their work. This important milestone also means that we will be able to avoid another strike and significant impacts on the public, as requested by Mayor Martinez Ferrada.”
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The union adds that no further comments will be made at this time on the content of the agreement so that members are the first to be informed. The consultation process will begin as soon as possible, and all members will be asked to vote on this new collective agreement by the end of the current year.
“It’s confirmed, we have a tentative agreement and the strike has been averted,” said the STM in an email to CityNews on Friday night. “We will not be granting any interviews in order to respect the agreement ratification process.”
The STM Board of Directors will need to ratify this agreement.
“No further information will be released until both the Board of Directors and union members have adopted the proposed settlement,” wrote the STM in a press release.
On Wednesday night, the Labour tribunal (TAT) had approved the strike by the bus drivers and metro operators’ union.
Negotations with maintenance workers’ union ongoing
Meanwhile, mediation with the maintenance union continues. “STM remains fully committed to the mediation process and hopes to reach an agreement that addresses its need for flexibility while respecting its ability to pay and its unprecedented current financial context,” said management in the press release Friday night.
In the morning, that union said there was no news for the moment and that negotiations were still taking place.
Service gradually returned to normal on Wednesday after the maintenance workers’ union, which had been on strike since Nov. 1, suspended its strike in anticipation of government intervention.
The union, Syndicat du transport de Montréal-CSN representing 2,400 maintenance workers, began a strike on the evening of Oct. 31. It was scheduled to continue until Nov. 28, before being suspended late Tuesday evening, after a dozen days of walkouts, with only essential services provided during rush hour.
The STM said that the three offers, including salary improvements along with cost-saving measures, were rejected by the maintenance workers union. But, added that negotiations were ongoing.
“Even though those offers were rejected, we’re not giving up,” the STM said. “A negotiated agreement remains the best outcome for everyone. We are still in mediation. We’ll reassess the situation at the end of the mediation period which is Nov. 28.”
