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Montreal transit workers are launching a strike Thursday for the fourth time this year as a contract dispute with the city’s transit agency continues to stall.
The Société de transport de Montréal (STM)’s 2,400 maintenance workers announced last month that they would refuse to work overtime during the holidays.
The strike is scheduled to take place between Dec. 11 and Jan. 11, according to a new strike notice filed by the maintenance workers’ union.
A Dec. 1 decision by the labour tribunal ruled that the initial notice was inadmissible.
The tribunal revealed its decision on the new strike notice on Wednesday afternoon.
The transit agency said adapted transport service will continue to operate as normal, as it is not affected by the strike.
Bus service will be provided at 100 per cent capacity at all times throughout the strike.
“However, as the strike progresses, there is likely to be a shortage of available vehicles that have not been repaired,” wrote the STM on its website.
Metro service will be maintained at 100 per cent capacity at all times during the day throughout the strike “thanks to the residual capacity of available vehicles.”
“When the union claims that its strike will not affect customers, it is misleading them,” said STM executive director Marie-Claude Léonard in a statement on its website.
“The combined effect of the holiday season and the refusal to work overtime will have a clear impact on bus service in particular, which will lead to more service disruptions as the strike progresses.”
WATCH | Why is there a new strike? :
Understanding the STM maintenance workers’ overtime strike
STM maintenance workers prepare to launch a fourth strike this year. It’s set to last a month but applies only to overtime hours as contract talks with the transit agency remain stalled.
The union previously said the STM relies heavily on overtime and it wants to pressure them to reach a collective agreement.
It says a deal could be reached by the holidays if the agency is willing to budge during talks.
Maintenance workers were set to strike throughout last month, but the action was suspended in mid-November, hours before Quebec’s labour minister tabled new legislation that could have forced them back to work.
Quebec now has legislation, known as law 14. that allows the provincial government to intervene and force striking public transit workers into arbitration and provide minimum services for the “well-being” of the public.
