NORTH BAY – On March 9, nearly 97 per cent of union members voted in favour of a strike -- however, at the 11th hour, Unifor Local 103 and Ontario Northland successfully reached a tentative agreement to narrowly avoid a work stoppage.
"Entering negotiations, we had one goal in mind -- to negotiate an agreement that shows the true value of our members, and we believe this tentative agreement does exactly that," said Jeremy Rodgers, president of Unifor Local 103.
More than 350 union employees at Northland including clerical, on-board service, stores, shops mechanics in Sault Ste. Marie, Timmins and Thunder Bay will still need to vote to ratify the agreement.
The bargaining committee will be recommending their members accept the tentative agreement, according to a release by Unifor Local 103.
"We would not have been able to negotiate this agreement without the solidarity and support of our membership," said Rodgers.