OFL Letter to Minister Naqvi on Elevator Worker Strike | The Ontario Federation of Labour

OFL Letter to Minister Naqvi on Elevator Worker Strike

June 5, 2013

Honourable Yasir Naqvi
Minister of Labour
14th Floor
400 University Avenue
Toronto, ON  M7A 1T7

Dear Minister Naqvi:

On May 1, 2013, elevator maintenance workers in Ontario were forced on strike by their employer, the National Elevator Escalator Association (NEEA), which is made up of four big companies – Otis, Kone, Schindler and ThyssenKrupp – who have a 95 percent monopoly on elevator operations in the province. The 1400 striking workers, members of the International Union of Elevator Constructors (IUEC), are a silent army that keeps our province moving. They ensure that the 50,000 elevators in workplaces, apartments, hotels, hospitals and schools are running smoothly and safely. Of these workers, 795 work in the Greater Toronto Area – a vertical city – which can expect to be impacted dramatically.

The union has been willing to negotiate, but since pushing workers out on strike the employer coalition has refused to voluntarily come to the table and bargain in good faith. The Ministry of Labour ordered both parties back to negotiations on May 23 and 24. The union presented a substantial offer, but the companies still declined it.

While these workers are off the job there is a significant safety concern for the public. Now that the one-month mark has passed, virtually all elevators maintained by these workers are out of compliance with safety standards, increasing the likelihood of elevator shutdowns and accidents. This is a serious safety hazard for millions of people across the province.

These workers have offered on several occasions to conduct maintenance and repairs to keep elevators safe and operational during bargaining. Astonishingly, the employers have refused to allow them to work during negotiations. In the meantime, these four big companies are protracting the dispute by using scab labour and managers to perform the work of the specially trained and licensed elevator mechanics. Replacement workers are far from able to keep up with all maintenance and repairs across the province and there is concern that they are not trained up to mandatory standards. In other words, the employers are creating a safety crisis.

The Technical Standards Safety Authority (TSSA) is responsible for regulating the safety of elevating devices in Ontario under the Technical Standards & Safety Act and is accountable to the public. They have yet to adequately intervene in the current situation. This is not surprising since one of the chief negotiators for the NEEA, Kevin Lavallee the former President and CEO of ThyssenKrupp, sits on the TSSA board. This is unacceptable and amounts to a serious conflict of interest. Employers cannot be responsible for regulating themselves. When this is the case, safety violations fall through the cracks and we risk facing another Metron tragedy where four workers fell to their death off scaffolding in Toronto in 2009. Too many workplace accidents and deaths have occurred in this province. We can no longer allow the interests of employers to be prioritized over the safety of workers and the public.

It goes without saying that the elderly, persons with disabilities and other vulnerable populations are disproportionately affected by this protracted dispute. Making the situation even worse, it has been brought to the attention of the union that the employers are dispatching replacement workers primarily in the financial district rather than to hospitals and nursing homes, contradicting what is laid out in their own contingency plan.

If a serious accident occurs during this labour dispute, the Government of Ontario will also be held responsible. We are writing to request that the Ministry of Labour demand that the NEEA return to the bargaining table so that an agreement can be reached. Until then, the safety of the Ontario public is at risk.

Sincerely,

[original signed]

SID RYAN

President
Ontario Federation of Labour

 

copy:     Kathleen Wynne, Leader, Ontario Liberal Party

Andrea Horwath, Leader, Ontario NDP

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