The Year of Transit: A ReView from the Bus

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times... That line from A Tale of Two Cities seems apt to describe this year of Guelph Transit news. There seemed to be a renewed focus and urgency on improving Transit services, but the results seemed to leave a lot to be desired according to the people on the ground, or in the bus.

Guelph Hydro to Begin Merger Negotiations With Alectra Utilities

You could cut the giddiness with a knife this afternoon at city hall as the results of the Strategies and Options Committee's search for a potential merger partner with Guelph Hydro has bore fruit. If everything goes according to plan, then Guelph Hydro and Alectra Utilities will merge in the near future, with a completed deal coming before council for a vote in mid-December.

City Reaches Agreement with CUPE Unions

Despite the issuance of a "no board" report a little over a week ago, and the inference that there may have been issues in reaching a deal between the City and three key CUPE locals, it seems that a four-day weekend of negotiations has wiped away all concerns. Tonight, as city plows hit the roads to deal with an early spring winter storm, the people of Guelph are assured that there will be no lockout of, or strike by its office employees, outside workers and librarians.

CUPE Negotiations with the City Hit a Snag

A quick but ominous press release was fired off from City Hall late today saying that the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) locals 241, 973 and 1946 have requested a "no board" report be filed with the Ontario Labour Relations Board. It means that the parties involved are basically not close to making a deal, but more ominously, it starts a three week countdown to potential job action.

OPEN SOURCES GUELPH BEAT #1 - CUPE and Affordable Housing

Do you like Open Sources Guelph, but hate when we talk about issues going on in places other than Guelph? Good news, we have a brand new podcast that takes the Guelph segments from Open Sources, and spins them off in a convenient half-hour dish called Open Sources Guelph Beat. (I know, what an original title!)

This Week in Press Releases - January 23-29, 2016

Every week, the City of Guelph and other groups send out notices to announce new events, imperatives, and information that you need to know. Here is this week in press releases.

This Week in Press Releases - January 18-22, 2016

Every week, the City of Guelph and other groups send out notices to announce new events, imperatives, and information that you need to know. Here is this week in press releases. 

PRESS RELEASE - Negotiations Begin Again with Local Firefighters

If you're thinking to yourself, "Wait a minute, didn't we just secure a new contract with firefighters a year ago?" you're wrong. It was actually 10 months ago. But since the agreement was backdated to January 2013, that means that by the time the agreement was reached it was about 60 per cent over. So the time has come to arrange a new contract, and the City of Guelph and the Mayor's Office has outlined the process.

City Makes "Final Offer" to Transit Union

Things look bleak for those hoping to avoiding some kind of work stoppage involving Guelph Transit, be it a strike or a lockout. A new press release from City Hall today says that Guelph has extended its last offer to the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1189, and a vote on the part of over 200 Guelph Transit employees will determine whether or not the union strikes, or the City will lock them out. For the embattled unionized workers of Guelph Transit, there's a handful of bad options in front of them, but for the City of Guelph, and more importantly the members of city council looking to get re-elected, no one wants a city service to fall to job action in the middle of an election year.

New Collective Agreement Ratified for Firefighters

As the city goes into arbitration with the Amalgamated Transit Union, they've appeared to lock up things with another group of essential public employees, the firefighters. After ratification by the Guelph Professional Firefighters Association, city council voted unanimously Monday to approve the new two-year agreement on their end. Of course because this thing is back-dated, it means this newly approved contract will expire at the end of the year, but the wage increases for the fire fighters have already been taken into account in the 2013 and 2014 budgets according to the city staff. 

Press Release - Collective Bargaining Begins Between City and Transit

This should be interesting. The city sent a press release out this morning saying that they're officially entering into collective bargaining with the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1189, the union that represents the city's transit employees. The last agreement was reached in the summer of 2010 and expired this past June, so transit workers have effectively been working without a contract for the last four months. Considering the tough times, could the issuing of the below press release be advanced notice that these negotiations might be tricky business? 

Press Release - Update on Firefighter Negotiations

Here comes labour trouble. One might think that if there's one union you don't want to stir up trouble with, it's the firefighters (except maybe police), but the City of Guelph is seeking interest arbitration in the negotiations with the Guelph Professional Fire Fighters Association (GPFFA) in order to secure a new contract.

Now people are more likely to side with their firefighters over their government, which is unsurprising, and while I'm not sure I like the tone of the press release, if these were garbage men or park workers, I don't think there would be any question as to what side the public would be on. As I've recently discovered (again) for myself, there's no shortage of anger about government spending no matter how many legitimate reasons why certain line items make life better are given. But I digress.