Talks resuming in Port Arthur clinic strike
Unifor, clinic management to meet Tuesday
Talks are set to resume Tuesday in a months-long strike at a Thunder Bay clinic.
Sixty-five employees at the Port Arthur Health Centre have been on strike since April 9, with no talks between them and their employer taking place since prior to that date, said Kari Jefford, president of Unifor Local 229, which represents the striking workers.
But with the strike escalating, and even ending up in court, in the past week, another round of talks will take place Tuesday morning, she said.
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"Both sides are coming together to hopefully negotiate a settlement," Jefford said, adding a meeting for Local 229 members has been scheduled for Tuesday night. That, she said, will "hopefully serve as a ratification meeting."
On Wednesday, a large group of picketers surrounded and effectively shut down the clinic. That led to clinic management seeking an injunction in Thunder Bay court, which would prevent the picketers from obstructing anyone who needed to access the clinic, and limit their ability to picket on clinic property.
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Justice Helen Pierce granted a temporary injunction on Wednesday, and the matter was scheduled to return to court Friday. However, when Friday came, the two sides didn't actually argue the injunction — rather, they met behind closed doors, along with Pierce, and discussed the issue.
Pierce, Jefford said, "really encouraged both sides to begin a respectful dialogue, were her words, and we did that over a three-to-four hour period on Friday."
After that meeting, clinic representatives said they'd bring the issue to the clinic's board for a vote, and let the union know by Monday at noon if they were willing to meet for further formal talks.
Jefford said the union got word Monday morning that management was willing to return to the table.
A call to clinic management wasn't returned.
Jefford said as of Monday afternoon, the two sides were still determining where and when talks would take place.
The outstanding issues, she said, are job security for employees, who are mainly casual, as well as wages.
"We're hoping to see some movement," Jefford said. "I don't think we are far off."