Library staff votes to strike, but talks continue
CITY HALL BUREAU CHIEF
Unionized employees of the Toronto Public Library voted 86 per cent in favour of a strike this week, but negotiations on a new contract will continue over the next few days with the help of a provincial conciliator.
“Our preference is to arrive at a negotiated settlement,” said Maureen O’Reilly, bargaining committee chairwoman for local 4948 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, which represents 2,400 library employees. “The library is unwilling to take those steps to get there,” she said yesterday.
Library spokeswoman Ana-Marie Critchley said in a statement: “we are committed to negotiating a settlement that is fair and reasonable to TPL employees and responsible to the residents of Toronto.” She declined further details about the talks.
Ms. O’Reilly, whose union was formed earlier this year after breaking away from the city’s powerful outside workers’ union, said the possibility of a labour disruption will become clearer “in the next couple of weeks.”
