Striking Hamilton Water operators spend Victoria Day on picket lines

Striking workers with the City of Hamilton’s Ontario Water and Wastewater Employees Association union were on the picket line Monday.

The workers have been off the job since Wednesday after rejecting The City of Hamilton’s contract offer.

The union represents 371 employees at Hamilton Water, who say they are looking for pay parity and want to get back on the job.

“We’re worried about what’s going on in there, because we’re not there overseeing things,” said Jack Jepsen, someone who was on the picket line at waste and wastewater treatment plant on Woodward Avenue. “I’m sure that there are people that have an understanding of how things work in the industry, but working in a different facility that you’ve never been in before – there’s gonna be a lot of challenges.

“We’re concerned about the level of service that’s being provided to the city at this point,” Jepsen continued, “it’s not the same as what we would be giving the city if we were doing out jobs.”

The city said in a statement last week that all essential water, wastewater, and stormwater services will continue uninterrupted.

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