Transit users in Windsor say a strike will cost them

Transit users say they'll turn to cabs or ridesharing on Monday, if nearly 300 Transit Windsor workers go on strike.

But the alternative arrangements will come at a hefty cost, they told CBC Windsor.

Rider Kat Hales says she doesn't have a driver's licence, and relies on the bus for both school and work.  On Monday, she says she'll have to take a cab if buses aren't operational.

"[It] is about one-quarter of my paycheque," she said.

Kat Hales is a Transit Windsor user who relies on the service for both work and school. (Dale Molnar/CBC)

Hales says it'll be an inconvenience — but she wants to support transit workers, too.

"There are definitely problems that need to be addressed, and I do want to support that, but I definitely will have a little trouble navigating without it," she said.

Emma Arimi is an international student who says she also relies on the bus. If workers strike on Monday, she says it'll be challenging to get to both work and class.

"Taking a cab is very expensive," Arimi said. "If I take a cab, it's like two hours of my pay. If I'm working for five hours, it means I'm using two hours to pay for my transportation."

John Fairley is the vice-president of college communications and community relations at St. Clair College. He says they've warned students — and are aware a transit strike could also impact faculty and other staff.

"We've sent a notification to all students and staff to be ready and watching for what happens Sunday night at midnight, to be prepared and to have a way of getting to the college or any campus that they're going to … in case there's a strike on Monday."

Union leader 'optimistic' ahead of strike deadline. 

A union leader representing Transit Windsor workers says there's a "long way to go," — but he's optimistic a deal can be reached — before nearly 300 transit workers hit the picket line on Monday.

"Bargaining is going extremely slow. We've been frustrated,"  said Manny Sforza, an international vice-president of Amalgamated Transit Union.

Transit Windsor workers are represented by ATU Local 616.

"Of course we are going to be here all weekend in the hopes of reaching a fair deal for our members… We're hoping to get a deal before midnight. Last thing we want to do is go out on strike and inconvenience the public."

Emma Arimi says taking a cab to work for a five-hour shift will cost her about two hours' pay. (Dale Molnar/CBC)

Members have been in a legal strike position since Dec. 3, Sforza says, but have given their 72-hour strike notice and will strike at 12:01 a.m. Monday if a deal is not reached.

"The last few days we've found some common ground. There's still a long way to go, but we've got three days and again I'm optimistic that we can reach a deal by Sunday."

He says the main issues are wages, health and safety and scheduling. On wages, Sforza said the industry standard is an increase in the neighbourhood of three to four per cent.

"We all know that the rate of inflation is much higher than that. So, you know, I can stand here confidently and say we're not being unreasonable," he said.

Sforza said the city is asking for concessions, and while he declined to elaborate, he said the union is "not interested."

With a strike possible as of 12:01 a.m. Monday, Transit Windsor opted to cancel the special-event bus to the Detroit Lions playoff game.

"We would be in a situation where the buses would be over in the states after the 12:01 deadline and there would be a possibility that we could be without service," said Mark Winteron, City of Windsor engineer. "The way we were looking at it from our point of view was to be on the cautious side and just cancel the service."

Winterton said about 125 people were signed up for the special bus service to the Lions game when it was cancelled, but refunds will be issues automatically.

But Sforza says they assured the city that workers would complete the run past midnight if needed.

"We were quite surprised this morning to hear that they had been cancelled," he said.

Riders will need to consider other options after the union representing Transit Windsor sets at strike deadline for Monday. (Chris Ensing/CBC)

Winterton said there would be a work stoppage in the event of a transit strike.

"Discussions and negotiations will continue throughout the weekend. And so we remain hopeful and and dedicated to negotiate a settlement," Winterton said. "In the event that the AU chooses to go on strike at 12:01 on Monday morning that will obviously cause a disruption to the public.

We wanted to make sure the public was aware of this possibility and seek it has ample time to to find alternative arrangements."

Winterton declined to comment on the specifics of the ongoing negotiations.

The ATU last gave the city strike notice in 2020, but a deal was reached before a strike.

Ridership on the service has rebounded since the COVID-19 pandemic, with Transit Windsor's executive director telling council late last year ridership sometimes reaches 130 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.