Read answers to frequently asked questions about a possible TTC strike, and how to prepare and take action!
The most important thing we can do right now is to urge TTC CEO Rick Leary and other decision-makers to negotiate a fair deal now! The more support we show now, the more likely that the TTC will negotiate a fair deal and avert a strike:
We all depend on transit workers: They keep the TTC moving through storms, holidays, and pandemics. They should be treated fairly.
TTC workers are fighting for job security, mental health supports, and keeping transit public. They also want to see guaranteed bus service levels in Etobicoke, North York, and Scarborough, which will benefit transit riders. If TTC bus service gets replaced by MiWay, York Region Transit, or Durham Region Transit service levels at the outer edges of the city, you could wait longer for the bus, because other agencies do not have the same service standards as the TTC
The TTC is planning to integrate transit service across municipal boundaries and remove TTC buses from routes where other agencies provide service. A pilot project is planned on segments of Dufferin and Burnhamthorpe, which are served by YRT, MiWay, and TTC, with other routes set for TTC service reductions in the future. This will mean a loss of accountability and transparency for transit riders: How can a Toronto transit rider have a say over York Region Transit service levels? The TTC has not yet guaranteed bus service levels for transit riders in Etobicoke, North York, and Scarborough.
If possible, make alternative plans now in case of a June 7 strike:
Yes, Wheel-Trans service will continue to operate. GO Transit will continue to operate as well.
ATU Local 113 members will be in a legal strike position on Friday, June 7th, 2024. This means if TTC workers do not get a fair deal at the negotiating table, they could walk off the job as early as 12:01am on the morning of Friday, June 7th. Or, the strike could begin later.
All workers deserve to be paid fairly and to have job security. Toronto is a very expensive place to live and the cost of living is going up, but TTC workers’ wages have not kept pace with inflation. TTC workers' wages went up by 6% over their last 3-year contract (around 2% each year) while inflation rose by 14% over the same time period.
Compare this to TTC CEO Rick Leary, who has enjoyed salary increases that have soared from $361,338 in 2020 to $562,326 last year -- a staggering 56% increase in just 3 years. Meanwhile, Rick Leary and the TTC Board are refusing to offer wage increases to workers that even keep up with cost of living increase over the past decade.
Transit workers are fighting for issues that will benefit riders, like keeping transit public and protecting TTC service levels at the edges of the city from cuts. They also want job security, which all workers deserve.
The right to strike is a Charter Right: All workers depend on this tool to get a fair deal. Ontario’s Court of Appeal just ruled that TTC workers have the right to strike too.
No transit rider wants to have service disrupted. Riders want the TTC to bargain fairly to avoid a strike.
Send a message to Mayor Olivia Chow and your City Councillor to support TTC workers!
TTC workers are fighting for:
Tell your elected representatives that you support high quality, safe, and reliable public transit, and that you want the TTC to guarantee bus service levels in the cross-boundary regions of Etobicoke, North York, and Scarborough. Replacing TTC bus service levels with MiWay, York Region Transit, or Durham Region Transit service levels will mean service cuts and waiting longer for the bus.
How can I take action?
How can the TTC afford to increase service and increase wages when fare evasion is happening?
The biggest fund evaders of the TTC are the provincial and federal governments, which have neglected to invest in the TTC’s maintenance needs for decades. Now, the TTC is becoming less reliable. Subway shutdowns are happening every week.
Prime Minister Trudeau has not chipped in for the new subway trains the TTC needs in the latest federal budget. The TTC needs to order new subway trains for Line 2, or service will become more unreliable.1 The TTC needs an additional $2.4 billion each year to stay in a state of good repair, and staff warn that TTC service levels will decline without more investment.2 But the federal government has not chipped in its share of funding for new subway trains or made new investments in repairing and maintaining the TTC.
Premier Ford has never restored stable provincial operations funding to run more TTC service. But Premier Ford wants to privatize the LCBO, which generates $2.5 billion every year in public revenue. That’s enough to keep the TTC in good repair each year, or make TTC free. Premier Ford just paid out $225 million to the Beer Store. That’s enough money for the TTC to run much more service (streetcars every 6 minutes, night buses every 20 minutes, restoring subways to every 6 minutes or better) and protect Wheel-Trans users from service cuts.
Why is it important to keep transit public?
Keeping services public means more transparency and higher service quality. Just look at the Eglinton Crosstown project: Years behind. Hundreds of millions of dollars in public money have been paid out to private companies through lawsuits. The same companies have a 30-year contract to maintain the Crosstown. The PRESTO system is another example: Years of delay to roll out features like tapping with debit and credit cards. Meanwhile, 5.25% of every TTC fare goes to PRESTO, which is a partnership between Metrolinx and a private company called Accenture.
Is there a plan to replace TTC bus routes with other transit agencies?
Yes, the TTC is planning to integrate transit service across municipal boundaries and remove TTC buses from routes where other agencies provide service. A pilot project is planned on segments of Dufferin and Burnhamthorpe, which are served by YRT, MiWay, and TTC, with other routes set for TTC service reductions in the future.3
What's wrong with other agencies providing service in Toronto?
You could wait longer for the bus, because York Region Transit and MiWay do not have the same service standards as the TTC. There will be a loss of accountability and transparency for transit riders: How can a Toronto transit rider have a say over York Region Transit service levels? The TTC has not yet guaranteed bus service levels for transit riders in Etobicoke, North York, and Scarborough.
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References:
2. https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2024/cc/bgrd/backgroundfile-246008.pdf
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