Ontario Construction News staff writer
Ontario NDP Labour critic Jamie West is accusing the Conservative government of bargaining in bad faith and locking out engineers who serve the public on critical infrastructure projects across the province.
“For workers who have been without a contract for more than a year, PEGO (Professional Engineers Government of Ontario) members have been more than reasonable,” West said. “They are paid substantially less than they would in the private sector, and they haven’t had a labour dispute in 35 years. But after more than 22 months at the bargaining table, the government has only shown up for 30 days of negotiations — the last of which was three months ago.”
West, who represents Sudbury, took aim at the government’s response to PEGO’s withdrawal of engineering services on the Bradford By-Pass and Highway 413 projects. According to West, the government informed workers that they could only return to their duties when directed by the province.
“Is this what public sector professionals can expect from this government — bargaining in bad faith and being locked out of their jobs?” West asked.
PEGO represents engineers across 11 provincial ministries and agencies, including those responsible for transportation, environmental protection, and public health. These engineers oversee $85 billion worth of public infrastructure projects.
West criticized the government for failing to resolve the dispute and called on them to return to the bargaining table.
