On May 1, workers with Grand River Transit (GRT) could walk off the job in search of better pay, benefits, and scheduling, but a lack of services could have significant impacts on people with accessibility concerns and students.
Unifor Local 4304 represents 850 transit workers in Waterloo Region who are in a position to strike as of May 1. They voted 93 per cent in favour of strike action ahead of the expiration of their collective agreement with the Region of Waterloo.
“Our members have spoken loud and clear — they are ready to stand up for the respect and fairness they deserve,” said Unifor Local 4304 President Heath Abbott in a release.
If the two sides fail to reach an agreement, bus services and Mobility PLUS routes will halt on May 1, but ION routes will continue to run.
“It’s the most vulnerable people who need this transportation the most that are going to be impacted,” said Edward Faruzel, executive director for KW AccessAbility.
More in transit
Faruzel noted that people are already calling him, wondering how they’re going to travel around the region without access to public transit, causing them to miss out on social interaction with their peers and essential services like visits to the doctor’s office.
“For a lot of people, it’s almost as if they’re back in COVID when we couldn’t go anywhere or do anything,” added Faruzel.
Students in Waterloo Region will benefit from the strike falling on the break in the academic schedule and the fact that the ION continues to run; students make up a significant portion of local transit users.
“Our hope is that this can all be sorted out before the strike comes into effect, but if not, we’ve seen this before,” said Damian Mikhail, president of the Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association.
Local 4304 last went on strike on May 1, 2023, walking off the job for 11 days before eventually reaching a new collective agreement with the region for an 11 per cent pay bump among other benefits.
Due to the uncertainty, GRT is advising monthly passholders to cancel their auto-renewal ahead of Saturday in case there are prolonged disruptions.