At 24 hours before the start of the strike by the Syndicat des chauffeurs, the Société de transport de Laval (STL) is raising the tone, denouncing that its customers are “unnecessarily exploited” by this work stoppage which will lead to a reduction in service, Friday and Saturday. .
“We believe that the achievement of a settlement passes by talks and not by actions which harm the customers”, hammered the direction of the company of transport in a press release Thursday, recalling that another meeting of conciliation is due to take place on November 29th.
In addition to reducing the service – the frequency of buses will be reduced on Friday and none of them will run on Saturday – the organization fears that the strike “affects Laval traders and their employees”. “We find this decision of the union regrettable, despite the negotiations in progress,” insists the management.
The administration also points out that the strike comes at a time when “public transport has been severely affected over the past two years by the pandemic, resulting in a significant decrease in ridership and a significant drop in revenues for the entire metropolitan region” .
It is in this “difficult” financial context that the STL says it has renewed the collective agreements with the unions of its office and maintenance employees. “The overall offer submitted to the Syndicate is fair and comparable to these. It should also be noted that the employees of the City of Laval, as well as several other union units representing bus drivers in Quebec, have also signed on the same basis of remuneration, ”the company is justified in this regard.
“Sufficient” criteria
On Tuesday, the Administrative Labor Tribunal (TAT) ruled that the service will be offered on Friday according to an adjusted schedule, but that no bus would run during the day on Saturday, ruling that these criteria “are sufficient for health or the safety of the population is not endangered ”.
Friday, services will be available in the morning, with a first departure at 6:00 am and a last at 8:45 am. In the afternoon, the first departure will be at 3:30 pm and the last at 6:30 pm Then, in the evening, the first buses will leave at 10:30 pm and the last at 12:30 am The union has chosen Friday and Saturday as strike days with the aim of having “an impact on traffic in stores during Black Friday. “.
“By its mismanagement, [la STL] is endangering the transportation service for the citizens of Laval. We do not want a strike, but we will do it to ensure the sustainable development of the city ”, criticized in a statement the president of the Union of drivers, Patrick Lafleur.
In this case, the main dispute concerns the maintenance of bus routes when demand is not sufficient, schedules and wages. The STL affirms that the overall offer submitted to the Union is fair and comparable to that agreed with the other union units in the company.