Travelers need to prepare for possible disruptions to Union Station services in Toronto today after nearly 100 employees at the transportation center left work.
Ninety-five workers from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Engineers went on strike at 1:01 a.m. Wednesday after the union and the Toronto Terminals (TTR) railroad failed to reach an agreement.
The workers are primarily responsible for signal maintenance and communication, as well as train control in the Union Station railway corridor.
A Metrolinx spokesman said an emergency plan had come into force and the transit agency continued to hope that the impact on GO Transit and UP Express would be limited.
However, Anne Marie Aikins says the risk of complications when traveling to the center may increase if there is a prolonged interruption of birth.
The pandemic has delayed contract negotiations
Metrolinx, which currently serves more than 300 trains a day to and from Union Station, advises customers to sign up for service notifications and check the GO and UP Express train schedules before leaving home. Aikins says Metrolinx will communicate frequently with customers to keep them informed if there are delays or cancellations.
She says the Toronto Transit Commission’s subway service will not be affected.
TTR says workers have been without a new contract since December 2019.
In a statement, the operator said he had begun negotiations with the union in early 2020, but negotiations were postponed due to the pandemic. They resumed last summer.
The employer says a preliminary agreement was reached in September 2021, but it has not been ratified by union members.
TTR says the union’s increased wage demands are at the heart of the issue.
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