REGINA — Regina transit workers have voted in favour of a strike mandate.
On Monday, members of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 588 voted 83 per cent in favour of the mandate, citing that wages haven’t kept up with the cost-of-living, and the city’s proposed budget cuts threaten jobs.
SaskToday tried reaching out to ATU Local 588, but received no response.
A statement posted by ATU Local 588 president Sukwinder Gainda said the mandate is a message to the City of Regina that job security matters.
“Our members keep this city moving, and they will not sit back while city council pushes $45 million in cuts that slash service hours, eliminate routes, and undermine the people who rely on transit every day.”
As part of the council's request to see the effects of mill rate reductions in the budget, administration outlined roughly 130 potential service cuts.
Transit has been listed with 16 cuts, the most notable ones include:
- Cutting bus service on statutory holidays.
- Conventional and paratransit service ending at 10:30 p.m. Conventional currently runs from 1 a.m., while paratransit goes until 12 p.m.
- Removing service from routes 15, 16, and 17, cutting 9,000 hours of transit time.
In total, these 16 cuts would mean 49 full-time employees being laid off.
In a statement sent to SaskToday, the City of Regina said it values its employees and remains committed to an agreement that ensures staff needs, with the interest of taxpayers and residents.
“Administration has confidence in the bargaining process and looks forward to reaching a fair and responsible collective agreement with the Amalgamated Transit Union, Local #588.”
Due to the bargaining process, the city cannot comment further on the subject, the city said.
According to their website, ATU Local 588 says Regina currently has 22 transit routes with roughly 1357 bus stops.
From their stats, Regina transit in 2019 had approximately seven million rides.
