TTC an Essential Service?

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/story/2011/02/22/ttc-essential-service658.html?ref=rss

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news...on-raises-fears-of-wider-bans/article1915753/



The city asked the province to make the Toronto Transit Commission an essential service. Is making the TTC an essential service worth it, they go through an arbitration anyways essential or not. I'm pretty sure they can go on strike illegaly, like in 2006 and get away with not getting in trouble. Why go through all this work when the can pull off a 2006 again. So do you all think making TTC essential worth it?

If there is a thread on this topic already, I'm sorry.

It is very hard to say. My feeling is that we will get less out of our taxpayer dollars, but have less days with no service. Figuring out how much no work stoppage is worth is difficult and really depends on the individual.

I think the term essential services puts the TTC (but really the City) in a very bad position. If this service is so essential, on the level of other essential services such as the police, fire fighters, doctors, etc., how can they justify making service cuts? If I was affected by recent or future service cuts, where my bus no longer runs when I need it, how are they providing me an essential service?

I understand the thought process behind it, because without the TTC (mainly during rush hours Monday to Friday) the City does fall apart. I wouldn't consider the police department essential if after 10pm they only responded to emergency and urgent calls and left everything else for the next morning.

TransitPolicyChanger said:

I think the term essential services puts the TTC (but really the City) in a very bad position. If this service is so essential, on the level of other essential services such as the police, fire fighters, doctors, etc., how can they justify making service cuts? If I was affected by recent or future service cuts, where my bus no longer runs when I need it, how are they providing me an essential service?

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The police force was temporarily trimmed by a few hundred officers this year with virtually no press mention or complaint through deferral in hiring replacements for leaving officers.

I wouldn't be surprised if those temporary cuts were made permanent next year. Cuts can be done.

On one hand, I believe that government-funded transit needs to be at least as reliable as government-funded asphalt, so I support this change.

On the other, the Fords seems to think that this will somehow magically reduce labour costs, which is misguided, so I'm worried what they'll do when they realize it doesn't.

It's ironic that the province would deem the TTC an essential service, but at the same time leave it so drastically underfunded that it cannot meet the basic needs of this city anymore. Having said that, the various subway closures 2 weeks ago as well as this weekend are a great reminder as to why the TTC is essential. There are possibly hundreds of thousands of people in this city that don't have access to a car, and the TTC is the only way that they can get around.

As a populist move it's a great one. If the union decides to exercise their right as an essential service to opt out of working overtime shifts and potentially work-to-rule, it will only advance the anti-union sentiment in this city. Team Ford can't really lose on this one.

Long-term, it's just going to jack up the cost of providing transit service in this city. I can't see that as a win. John Tory, of all people, has actually done a really good job on his show explaining why this move is a dumb idea.

Good for politicians, bad for people.

In the last few years, Durham Region and Ottawa both faced long term strikes. The latter has a very high ridership compared to population, higher than in the GTA in fact. I've met people who have had their employment effected by both strikes. Why is Toronto's transit more "essential" than these systems?

As TransitPolicyChanger mentioned, when I think of essential I think of services that relate directly to public health and safety. A transit strike may be a major inconvenience, but it is not life or death. The vast majority of people who do use transit also have an alternative mode of transport, such as driving, cycling, carpooling, taxis, and walking. This is not to mention that we have a backup mode of transit with GO, something Ottawa doesn't have.

I think the best course of action would be to make it that public unions must give at least 24 hours notice before walking off the job, or else forfeit any legal strike position. This way we can ensure that people can prepare themselves for any labour action, and it removes the self-destruct card for douchebags like Bob Kinnear.

Electrify said:

Why is Toronto's transit more "essential" than these systems?

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Very simple, Queen's Park ends strikes. Queen's Park can't function well without the TTC. Ergo to them it seems much more important that the Regional Municipality of Nowhere.

Electrify said:

In the last few years, Durham Region and Ottawa both faced long term strikes. The latter has a very high ridership compared to population, higher than in the GTA in fact. I've met people who have had their employment effected by both strikes. Why is Toronto's transit more "essential" than these systems?

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Those cities or regions are either smaller in area (and people can walk to a destination) or they were built around the automobile. However, should there be fuel shortages in the future, transit would become more important and long term strikes could become a no-no everywhere.

That may be true of Durham, but I don't think it's true of Ottawa. If Ontario had had jurisdiction, I doubt the last strike in Ottawa would have been let to go on for 2 months. The feds couldn't do much, as the strike started a few days after Harper's famous proroguing of Parliament. There was nothing the feds could do to end the strike, and the union came to an agreement a couple of days after Parliament returned.

I think the TTC is a lot more essential that people realize. If you look at how much of the city is households without car ownership there is a huge portion of the population that rely on alternatives. In many areas half the households don't own a car. Still, while this means there is a greater dependence on the TTC it doesn't necessarily mean it is a good idea to make the TTC an essential service. I have to agree with those that there are many more steps prior to making the TTC essential to meet the needs of those who rely on the TTC. Things like ensuring timeliness, reducing service outages on the subway, providing better alternative when an outage occurs, etc.

http://www.thestar.com/staticcontent/831330