To Strike or Not to Strike

That be the question.

Today is D-day for us here in Toronto who depend on public transit to get to work. The Transit workers have given the TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) management until noon to come to a contract agreement or on Monday there will be no bus or subway.

Its the usual argument between management and unions in regards to salaries, benefits, pensions and the like so we all wait with bated breath to see what the outcome will be.

If the TTC goes on strike on Monday the city will be a mess. Torontonians use public transit in greater amounts than most North Americans so alot of us will be in real trouble trying to find a way to work on Monday without transit.

Mind you, I must say I like the way the Unions have played this one. They were in position to strike since April 1st but they gave management more time to negotiate. The Unions had said that they were going to strike from yesterday but they gave management another deadline of noon today to settle or not they will strike from Monday. This gives employers and employees some time this afternoon and over the weekend to enact contingency plans. Well played I say. A good way to soften the impact or to make oneself not seem as villainous. If you look at it from that perspective they are being actually quite nice since they would have been justified to go on strike earlier. Great P.R on their part. Still they will get cussed when they do strike. No doubt about that.

They also picked a nice time to go on strike with the university exam period about to start or already started at the numerous colleges and universities around Toronto. Nothing like a captive ridership to pick on.

Oh well cold have been worse at least they waited till it has warmed up a bit to strike. Imagine them striking in February. Lawd ave mercy!

I always wonder about strikes and their timing though. I always give props to the postmen. Their collective agreements always seem to run out in November or October so they can threaten to strike for Christmas. That leads to quick settlement because the government does not want to have to deal with anyone upsetting Christmas.

On the other hand the Teachers seem to strike in September. For educators them fellas real stupid ya kno. If you are a teacher you should be striking somewhere from March or May and upsetting everyone's plans for the end of the terms. Why? Because end of term exams and the completion of the curriculum would be in jeopardy. All sorts of reports and marks to go on to other schools would be in trouble. Parents (both voters and tax payers in the eyes of politicians) would get on government's case. The teachers would have a great position from which to bargain but noooo they strike in September when children now coming off of summer holidays and no one really too interested in school. Ya mean people with this sorta logic is who teaching the youngsters? Lawd ave mercy this generation in school aint got a chance then.

Anyway, Monday will be hell on the roads if this TTC thing isn't resolved successfully. The press conference is going to be held at 2:30 today to let us know what happened. I am just imagining how crazy the roads will be on Monday. I've got a class which I hope will be cancelled because then I'd just take the day off and stay home instead of dealing with the drama on the roads. Unfortunately that's not an option for most folks so lets hope for the best.

p.s: for all the ANTM fans sorry about the lack of a recap this week. I may still do one tonight or tomorrow though if you guys really want one.

p.s 2 - its now 2:55 and the word is the strike is on. DAMM!