Peterborough City-County paramedics represented by CUPE Local 4911 cannot go on strike before 6:30 a.m. on Friday, November 13 following a decision by the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB).
Peterborough County announced the decision on Friday (October 30), less than 12 hours before paramedics had previously been expected to enter a legal strike position at 12:01 a.m. Saturday.
A response from CUPE Local 4911 to the decision was not available as of publication.
According to the county, the delay gives the two parties additional time to negotiate an updated essential ambulance services agreement (EASA), which sets the minimum number of paramedics and ambulances that must continue operating during a strike.
Under Ontario law, paramedics cannot strike unless an EASA is in place, and the county and CUPE Local 4911 disagree about whether the existing EASA from 2017 remains valid.
CUPE said the 2017 EASA remains in effect, arguing the parties were required to provide 190 days’ notice to cancel an existing agreement. The union accused the county of going to the OLRB at the last minute in an attempt to invalidate it and delay the October 31 strike deadline.
According to the county, the parties disagree over the status of the 2017 EASA agreement and that disagreement is the basis of the OLRB proceedings. Stating that public safety is its priority, the county said the additional time provided by Friday’s ruling will allow the parties to negotiate a new EASA. If they cannot reach one, OLRB will decide the matter.
The OLRB ruling comes after the final scheduled bargaining session between the two sides ended on Tuesday without a tentative collective agreement. Paramedics have been without a collective agreement while negotiations have continued since March.
On Wednesday, CUPE said the parties remained far apart after six months of bargaining on what it described as the central issues of wage parity with other first responders and adequate mental health benefits. The union said it remained willing to return to negotiations and avoid a labour disruption if meaningful progress was being made.
On September 25, 185 of 187 CUPE Local 4911 members — 99 per cent — voted in favour of a strike mandate. The union subsequently received a no-board report, which had initially put members on track to enter a legal strike position as of October 31.
CUPE Local 4911 president Jordan Lean told kawarthaNOW earlier this week that the union did not want to strike but was prepared to use job action if necessary to achieve a deal.
“We don’t want to strike, but if we need to, that is one avenue to promote change,” Lean said.
The union has identified compensation, mental health benefits, recruitment, and retention as key bargaining issues.
Lean said full-time paramedics currently receive $500 annually in mental health coverage while part-time and casual paramedics receive none. He has also said Peterborough City-County Paramedics has lost 55 paramedics over the past three years, which the union attributes to increasing call volumes, workplace pressures, and better compensation elsewhere.
The county disputes the union’s characterization of recruitment and retention.
On Wednesday, the county said its latest offer, tabled on October 27, includes wage increases totalling almost 18 per cent over three years, along with annual mental health coverage of $5,000 for full-time paramedics and their dependants and $2,000 for each part-time paramedic.
The county said the wage proposal would make Peterborough paramedics the highest paid among Eastern Ontario paramedic services that have settled contracts to date. It also said an average of nine paramedics, representing about five per cent of the workforce, leave the service each year for various reasons.
The county has also proposed sending the outstanding bargaining issues to an independent interest arbitrator, an option it says the union has declined.
CUPE has maintained that its proposals are intended to retain experienced paramedics, attract new recruits, and improve mental health supports for workers routinely exposed to traumatic situations.
In Friday’s announcement, Peterborough County said its offer and proposal for independent arbitration remain on the table and that it remains focused on reaching an agreement without a strike.
Paramedic service continues as normal while bargaining and the essential-services process continue.
Residents should continue to call 911 for medical emergencies.
With files by Bethan Bates.
