Montreal bus, metro drivers vote in favour of new deal with transit agency

An STM bus. (LA PRESSE CANADIENNE/Graham Hughes) (Graham Hughes)

Bus and metro drivers have voted in favour of an agreement reached with Montreal’s public transit agency as other unionized public transit workers engage in overtime strikes expected to last into the new year.

The union representing the 4,500 bus drivers, metro operators, and station agents -- the largest of the six unions at the agency -- voted on Sunday.

“Our goal was to ensure that our members are paid fairly, taking into account comparable salaries in the area, as well as the rising cost of living we are all facing, and we believe we have succeeded,” said Frederic Therrien, president of Local 1983 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, in a statement.

As negotiations lagged, its members walked out for one day on Nov. 1, the first strike by drivers in nearly 40 years. They were prepared to strike again in mid-November before the agreement was struck.

The dispute concerned wages, schedules, and work-life balance and the deal included a 17.5 per cent wage increase over five years.

“This concludes a negotiation that wasn’t easy, and we are proud of the outcome under the circumstances,” Therrien said.

Separately, 1,300 administrative and technical employees have also ratified their own tentative agreement.

Marie-Claude Leonard, the CEO of the agency, has said there are limited public funds available to grant generous wage increases. She has also said the agency needs to find $56 million in savings in its budget.

The agency is still negotiating with 2,400 unionized transit maintenance workers who started refusing to work overtime last Thursday.

The refusal to work overtime is the fourth labour disruption for maintenance workers since the beginning of the year.

Also Monday, the union representing professionals, such as engineers, analysts, architects, IT consultants, planning, infrastructure, and finance departments, have announced an overtime strike, the first in their 31-year history.

Both strikes will run until Jan. 11.

• READ ALSO: Union accuses Montreal transit authority of waging a ‘scare campaign’ to justify arbitration

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Dec. 15, 2024.