WSIB and union members remain at odds one week into strike

Unionized WSIB workers hit the pavement in Waterloo as a strike reaches the one week mark.

People who usually help injured workers are hoping to drum up a little support of their own as they hit the picket lines.

Members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) 1750, also known as the Ontario Compensation Employees Union (OCEU), have been on strike since May 22. They walked off the job following months of negotiations with the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB).

A demonstration was held in Uptown Waterloo on Wednesday, with union members insisting working conditions were among their chief concerns. “Our caseloads have been anywhere between 85 and 147,” union member Regan Dagostino said. “Our training has been cut. It used to be six months. [For] anybody coming in, it’s been reduced to weeks. We’re being asked to deliver service without proper training.”

Dagostino said she primarily works with first responders. She said some of the calls she answers are from people experiencing a severe mental health crisis who may be at risk of serious harm.

“It’s an important job. We all take it extremely seriously,” Dagostino said. “It’s very difficult to try to deliver the service that we all want to provide under the conditions that we have right now. It’s impossible.”

Previously, union representatives raised concerns with wages and accused the WSIB management team of failing to provide a meaningful offer.

The WSIB said their offer to the union “includes enhanced benefits and a wage increase above inflation in 2025.”

Accusations of delays

Both sides have accused the other of causing unnecessary slowdowns in the negotiation process.

Union representatives said they were ready to resume bargaining on Wednesday, but WSIB management never showed up.

Meanwhile, a representative for WSIB Ontario said the union had asked them to return to the table but WSIB would only do so when the union put forward a meaningful counter to their previous proposal.

“They did not send through any proposal until the early hours of this morning,” read an email sent to CTV News on Wednesday.

“We are pleased that OCEU has decided to come back to the bargaining table,” the WSIB said. “The WSIB remains committed to reaching a fair and reasonable agreement that recognizes the needs of people who are injured as our top priority.”

The union also said they have been locked out of their systems since last Wednesday. According to the WSIB, union members will not have access to company systems while the strike continues.

“That is standard practice to maintain the integrity of the organization,” the WSIB email stated.

“We’re still ready to come back to the table whenever the employer is ready to give bargaining the serious attention it deserves,” Dave Peddle, OCEU treasurer, said in a news release. “The best thing we can do to support our members is get a deal.”

The union hopes to get everyone back at the bargaining table by Thursday.

WSIB previously said injury reports, claims and documents can still be submitted online while the job action continues.