ATU international vice-president Randy Graham (left) and ATU 279 president Andre Cornellier (right) sat among dozens of transit workers who packed the Ottawa city council meeting Wednesday. (CBC)

An Ottawa city councillor could face sanctions from his council colleagues after criticizing the city's and the mayor's handling of the transit strike, which was in its 36th day Wednesday.

City council went behind closed doors shortly before noon to discuss possible sanctions against Capital Ward Coun. Clive Doucet and other matters related to the transit strike. By late afternoon, councillors had still not emerged.

On Tuesday, Doucet had suggested the city should replace its negotiating team, saying it was "out of touch" with what is needed to end the strike and the city's approach to the situation has been "irresponsible." Doucet also called O'Brien "badly qualified" and "maladapted" to deal with the strike.

Mayor Larry O'Brien is the official spokesperson for council on the transit strike, and council is expected to crack down on Doucet's transgression.

'Don't blame the union. We are there to fight for our rights, the right to bargain in good faith and that's what we're doing.'— André Cornellier, president, ATU 279

Later Wednesday, council was scheduled to discuss possible new measures to minimize the effects of the strike on Ottawa residents. These measures include opening the city's dedicated Transitway to cars and providing free downtown parking to those who car pool.

Staff members were also expected to reveal how much the strike is costing or saving the city.

Wednesday's city council meeting was the first since the striking workers rejected the city's latest contract offer in a forced vote last Thursday, and it attracted dozens of striking transit workers, who packed the public gallery of the council chambers until they were forced outside when the meeting moved behind closed doors.

Earlier that morning, union members cheered loudly as Doucet arrived.

Randy Graham, international vice-president of the Amalgamated Transit Union that represents the workers, said Wednesday that he finds it unacceptable that a publicly elected official isn't allowed to voice his opinion of the situation.

"The way they've treated councillor Doucet I think is appalling," he said. "They should be ashamed of themselves."

Meanwhile, André Cornellier, president of ATU 279, the striking local branch of the union, said Wednesday that it's up to the city to restart negotiations, as union members already rejected the city's latest offer and union leaders will not go back to the table unless the city moves from that position.

He said the city should be ashamed for not living up to its responsibilities to the businesses and taxpayers who are suffering as a result of the strike.

"Don't blame the union. We are there to fight for our rights, the right to bargain in good faith, and that's what we're doing."

Doucet 'a loose cannon': councillor

Following Doucet's public remarks Tuesday, Coun. Eli El-Chantiry said Doucet is out of line and alone in his views.

"To this point, we only have one loose cannon on the team," he said. "But the rest of us, we're going to go there and work on Plan B, try to mitigate as much as possible the pain and the suffering of the people who're really stuck at home."

On Wednesday, Coun. Rainer Bloess also criticized Doucet but defended his right to speak.

"He can make himself look stupid, but we are going to point out how dumb his comments were here," Bloess told council shortly before the meeting moved behind closed doors.

About 2,300 transit drivers, dispatchers and maintenance workers represented by Amalgamated Transit Union Local 279 walked off the job on Dec. 10.

The striking workers are employees of OC Transpo, the transit company owned and run by the city.

On Jan. 8, the union voted 75 per cent against the city's latest offer, after being ordered to vote by the federal labour minister at the request of the City of Ottawa. Following the vote, O'Brien said the city's next move would be decided at this week's council meeting.

No talks have been held between the two parties since the city issued the offer on Dec. 23 and a federal mediator failed Tuesday to get the two sides back to the table.

The city's offer included a new scheduling system. To accommodate the increased ridership during the morning and afternoon rush, many drivers work split shifts, comprising several hours of work in the morning followed by a break and then several more hours of work in the afternoon. Under the current system, drivers choose the morning and afternoon shifts separately.

Under the proposed system, the city pairs the morning and afternoon shifts together, and they can be spread over up to 13.5 hours. In both systems, drivers with higher seniority get to pick their shifts first.

The city alleges the new system would be fairer and more efficient. The union alleges it would take away from the drivers' ability to balance their work and personal lives.