Unifor members vote for strike against VIA Rail

VIA Rail Canada workers represented by Unifor Council 4000 and Local 100 yesterday announced a 97.5% vote in favor of a strike action as the union and passenger-rail company have failed to reach a contract agreement.

A 60-day conciliation period facilitated by federal officers ends May 31 and will be followed by a 21-day cooling off period. If a tentative agreement is not reached in that time, members represented by Unifor could begin a legal strike on June 22.

The Unifor bargaining committees have said VIA Rail is maintaining major concession as the table and has failed to respond to the union's monetary proposals, Unifor officials said in a press release.

“Our goal is a fair agreement — not a strike,” said Unifor Quebec Director Daniel Cloutier. “But VIA Rail must understand that our members will not accept concessions and delay tactics. The time to reach a deal is now.”

Unifor represents over 2,500 workers at VIA Rail, including on-board service staff, maintenance crews, customer service agents, and skilled trade and administrative employees.