CUPE 4705, representing roughly 1,500 inside and outside workers, will enter conciliation this week, with the assistance of a provincial mediator in talks with the City of Greater Sudbury.
“Talks are not progressing as we hoped,” said Mike Bellerose, president of CUPE 4705. “We’ve been in bargaining for nearly three months, and we are concerned that we are getting close to impasse. We hope that the assistance of a provincial mediator might help unlock these talks in a productive way.”
The union’s collective agreements expired on March 31. Talks are scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday with a mediator appointed by the Ministry of Labour.
CUPE 4705 represents the bulk of the City’s unionized employees, including paramedics, bus drivers, pool and library workers, roads and parks workers, water and wastewater workers, garbage collectors, Ontario Works staff, clerical and technical staff, and many more.