Candid Comment - The HSR Drivers On Strike

    

Like our mayor in Hamilton, many agree with the union's bargaining processes, including going out on strike. Some of the issues on the table the ATU has been discussing are very legitimate. 

• Bathroom breaks.
• Security and safety on the buses due to increased risks of violence by aggressive passengers.  
• Better hours.
• Better pay.

As noted, Anyone can agree that these are legitimate points of interest and should be addressed at the bargaining table.

So what's the beef? It's when the president of ATU 107, Eric Tuck, babbles on about how the members have lost 7% of their buying power due to inflation, making it hard for the drivers to deal with inflation. Welcome to the club. Most Canadians are coping with inflation and a government that continues to allow monopolies to flourish in Canada in key sectors of the economy—food, communications, and banking.  

Reviewing the contract that the union has now is pretty sweet. The drivers get 57K to start and can make as much as 70K plus after a few years of service, which is alright. The city is offering 13% over four years, and the union wants 23%. The drivers also get free rides for life after ten years of service, premiums for working on Sundays, and they can not be laid off due to contracting out. They retain benefits for up to a year when they are laid off. These are a few of the notable things they have in the contract.  

What probably galls most transit riders, or at least many, is the implication by the union that the drivers took severe risks during the COVID-19 pandemic. Really? Healthcare workers, funeral parlor staff, police, and fire, what about them? They surely took risks. As did food service staff and call center staff who could not work from home and went to their centers to handle calls primarily from unhappy and sometimes angry customers. Taxi drivers also faced risks taking people places, as did ambulance staff who transported the sick and dying to the hospital along with the staff inside the hospital who supported doctors and nurses who risked getting. COVID to keep the facilities running and the restaurant staff who went to work to ensure they did not go under and also help feed people. Clergy, social workers, and other key officials in and out of government also provided support during COVID-19. In short, everyone was affected, and many people were doing their jobs in the public space, risking exposure to the disease.

Post-pandemic has not been an easy ride. I want to share a brief synopsis of my own experience. I did work from home but was forced out of my home due to rent issues. My spouse got seriously ill and is still very sick to this day. So, I traveled in transit and lived in an AirBandB while working in my center. Mid-pandemic, I found a roommate and moved in with them. 

Near the end of the pandemic, companies began forcing staff back to the office with no recourse to opt into work from home; it was returned or fired. While true, handling the pandemic risk via work from home was supposed to be a temporary fix during the pandemic. The decisions made by many companies have been arbitrary. Instead of showing compassion and care for the staff, they should have entertained a dialogue about options like working from home but acted like two-year-olds demanding that staff do it their way with no recourse.

Many companies stood firm, come back, or be terminated. Because of this attitude, an increase in distrust has arisen in many workplaces, and bullying has become a serious problem. Instead of trying to fix the problem, some companies have opted to shift the trouble-making leaders into roles that only affect staff a little. Many senior managers and CEOs are not apologizing for their mistakes or making half-hearted attempts to apologize for their errors. They have failed to acknowledge that they allowed or caused pain and suffering to the most essential team members, the front-line staff of their companies. Why can't the companies say sorry to the staff? I can not answer this question, but what we see within companies is also seen in how both parties handling this strike.

In fact, that is what the union and the city are also saying to passengers: it's your problem, not ours. While they quibble about wages, people are left to ride Uber, e-scooters, bikes, walk, and maybe get friends and family to drive them places. No thought about the impact is a consideration. The only thing being done here is digging in heels by both sides, just like with the companies. What is needed here is a sincere apology to the riders and an effort by both sides to find a middle ground. At least, make an effort. Try to do something to fix this and get the buses back on the road again. It is time to stop acting like a bunch of toddlers with temper tantrums and behave like civil adults, and part of that is finding a compromise that works for both parties. Neither side is winning the popularity vote of the public; both the mayor and Mr. Tuck look more like two-year-olds rather than adults. For Hamilton, this is a bad image in an age where we need civility now more than ever. Let's hope civility takes hold so.

The ATU local 107 and city of Hamilton finalized an agreement as of November16 2023 ending the week long strike that saw bus service halted.  As of the 17th transit service resumed.