Ontario premier must settle developmental services dispute

'I’m calling on the premier to write a cheque now and get everyone back to work.' - Warren (Smokey) Thomas

London (28 June 2007) - Premier Dalton McGuinty must provide the funding required to settle the dispute between social services workers and developmental services agencies, says Warren (Smokey) Thomas, president of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU/NUPGE).

Four groups of workers are on strike now in London, Middlesex, Chatham-Kent and Elgin, and strike votes have been taken at 17 other agencies across the province. Employers and employees agree that wages are too low. The gap between striking workers and those in equivalent positions in other fields is 25-30%.

“The McGuinty government knows it is severely under-funding services for people with developmental disabilities,” Thomas says. “The money was set aside in the budget, yet the government fails to make it available to workers. I’m calling on the premier to write a cheque now and get everyone back to work.”

Thomas said workers want to return to their jobs and it is up to the premier to “provide the money now, and settle these strikes.” NUPGE