Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty is urging patience in a three-day-old civic workers' strike that has garbage bags piling up in Toronto.

McGuinty says he, like many others, is being inconvenienced by the lack of garbage pickup.

But it's important, he says, that both sides in the labour dispute get the opportunity to speak and asks that people in the city hold fire and allow them to continue discussions.

Economic Development Minister Sandra Pupatello, of Windsor, says people in her city seem to be coping better with their 10-week-old garbage strike.

In an off-the-cuff remark, she jokingly referred to Toronto residents as "babies."

Pupatello says she hasn't been approached by either the City of Windsor or the union to impose back-to-work legislation, and she commended people in Windsor for their patience and their handling of the strike.

About 24,000 inside and outside municipal workers walked off the job in Toronto on Monday, bringing garbage pickup to a halt and shutting down city-run daycares, parks and recreation programs, swimming pools and the Toronto Island ferry service.

In Windsor, roughly 400 workers responsible for road work, gardening, garbage and recycling pickup walked off the job April 15 — with another 1,400 workers in daycare, social services, bylaw enforcement and clerical work joining them several days later.

Negotiations in the Windsor strike were called off last week after the union walked away from the bargaining table, citing information leaked to the media.