SMACKED AROUND MOOSEHEADS SUFFER DISAPPOINTING LOSS AT HOME {page 25} OUT OF THE RACE HOWARD EPSTEIN WON’T BE RUNNING FOR MAYOR {page 4}
RED-EYED WIZARD RADCLIFFE TALKS ABOUT BEING DRUNK ON SET
{page 19}
HALIFAX
Monday, February 6, 2012 www.metronews.ca News worth sharing.
Bus to nowhere
It’s now Day 5 of Metro Transit strike, with no end in sight and no talks planned
Quarterback Eli Manning of the New York Giants poses with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after the Giants defeated the Patriots by a score of 21-17 in Super Bowl XLVI at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Sunday. Story, page 24. ROB CARR/GETTY IMAGES
Another Super-sized win for Giants
Transit strike negotiations are going nowhere. Fast. There was no movement over the weekend. Both sides are sticking to their guns. Metro Transit wants the union to take its latest offer to its members for a vote, and the union’s bargaining team wants to be back at the bargaining table. And there are still the concessions: 70 by the union’s count, but 27 that can multiply across departments, according to Metro Transit. No negotiations are planned for the coming week, Ken Wilson, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 508, said Sunday. “It’s the same stuff the members have turned down without the three big things. I don’t need the vote, so why waste the money?” he said in reference to HRM’s last offer. The three big things already remedied through previous negotiations are part-time workers, contracting out and making workers the highest paid in Atlantic Canada.
“People’s patience isn’t going to last long with this.” KEN WILSON, PRESIDENT OF AMALGAMATED TRANSIT UNION LOCAL 508
Eddie Robar, head of Metro Transit, declined an interview Sunday, but HRM spokeswoman Shaune MacKinlay said they’re sticking to their position and haven’t had any recent communication with the union. Meanwhile, picketing continues day and night. Wilson said people are dropping off coffee, gift cards and sandwiches to the workers, and labour groups are lending tents and camping stoves. “If 763 workers are prepared to lose their pay and stand out in -18 C weather for four-hour shifts, then that has to tell you it must be worth it,” Wilson said. JENNIFER TAPLIN
More coverage {pages 3, 16}