A Monday transit strike seems more likely with the rejection of an offer by transit workers this afternoon.
YRT bus drivers and maintenance staff, represented by Amalgamated Transit Union 1587, rejected offers from two contractors, Miller Transit and First Student Canada.

“It was not unexpected, but certainly disappointing,” First Student spokesperson Maureen Richmond said.

Miller is responsible for YRT routes in the region’s southeast, including Markham and Richmond Hill, while First Student is responsible for the north, including Newmarket and Georgina.  Unless a last-minute deal is reached, about 250 transit employees will be on strike Monday morning.

“We’d like to continue negotiations because we’d like to get a resolution,” Ms Richmond said.

Two more important transit contracts are also being negotiated.  About 1,500 GO workers are also set to walk off the job Monday. Bus service would be affected, but train service would continue.

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Dozens of letter carriers walked off the job in Winnipeg on Monday in protest over a new mail delivery method they call unsafe.

In implementing its modernized methods of sorting and delivering mail, part of the corporation’s transformation project, Canada Post has been facing resistance from employees in Winnipeg, the first city to operate under the new “two-bundle” system.

When one worker refused to follow the new rules, he was cited for insubordination and immediately suspended. Dozens of other carriers from the mail depot — 76 in total — then walked out in solidarity.

About 15% of the city’s routes were affected, said Jon Hamilton, a spokesman for Canada Post.

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BOWMANVILLE, Ont. — Dozens of workers set up picket lines outside the St. Marys Cement plant in this eastern Ontario town on Sunday over proposed changes to their pension plan.

The walkout follows two months of intensive negotiations between the Canadian Auto Workers and the Toronto-based company.

Currently, the workers have a defined-benefit plan, meaning the amount of their pensions is fixed.

Similar plans across Canada have found themselves deeply in the red in recent years, mostly due to low interest rates, leaving companies which sponsor the plans scrambling to make up the shortfall.

CAW national representative Keith Osborne said the company wants to change the plan structure to a defined-contribution plan, which could mean lower benefits on retirement.

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