CUPE 1656 members on strike as Region of Waterloo turns its back on workers

WATERLOO, ON –(COMMUNITYWIRE)– Members of CUPE 1656 are on strike following the Region of Waterloo’s decision to break its promises made during negotiations, leading to the closure of waste management centres, delays at the regional airport and the disruption of services residents rely on.

“Make no mistake, the only reason we are on strike today is entirely due to Region of Waterloo Council Chair Karen Redman and Waterloo Council’s decision to turn its back on workers and lie to us during negotiations in a failed attempt to force us to settle for less than half of what had originally been offered,” said CUPE 1656 President Phil Dominas. “If it wasn’t for Chair Redman and Council’s decision to break their promises, we would have reached a deal weeks ago and we would be at work today.”

CUPE 1656 members are full and part-time workers who work to provide clean drinking water, airport services, regional road maintenance, maintenance of emergency vehicles, and landfill services to the Region of Waterloo. They also are trades workers including millwrights, HVAC, plumbing and signals who keep water, traffic, and buildings running. The local has been in negotiations for some time and was close to reaching a deal when the Region unfairly took back proposals they had already tabled during negotiations.

“Chair Redman and Regional Council thought that they could get away with trying to pull the wool over our eyes and mislead us into accepting a worse deal,” Dominas said. Our members won’t accept that, and we will be on strike until the Region comes back to the table and honours the commitments they made—we won’t accept anything less.”

Residents are encouraged to visit cupe.on.ca/waterloo and contact Regional Council Chair Karen Redman and Waterloo Regional Council and tell them to honour their commitment to Local 1656 members and end the strike.

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For more information, please contact:

Eric Bell, CUPE Communications
(306) 580-0893
ebell@cupe.ca