Blue-collar workers are protesting in front of Montreal City Hall on Friday. According to Noovo Info, the demonstration is causing a complete closure of Notre-Dame Street in the area. This comes after workers blocked traffic near the Olympic Stadium for nearly six hours on Thursday. This is the second strike by blue-collar workers this year after their collective agreement expired on Dec. 31, 2024. The previous strike was on Feb. 4. The dispute is mainly over wages, with Montreal offering an 11 per cent increase over five years, something the workers’ union, a local branch of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), called “indecent.” The union says the average municipal worker in Montreal earns $55,000 per year, and a minimum increase of seven per cent per year is needed. The local CUPE branch represents 6,200 City of Montreal workers across 180 job titles.
