Community and social workers across Ontario have been walking the picket lines for nearly a month, in a labour dispute that shows no sign of a quick resolution. At the heart of their action is a demand that the provincial government make sure funding actually reaches the front lines of the services they provide.
The workers say what they are owed is money that has already been promised in principle. They are seeking retroactive wages tied to Bill 124, the legislation that capped public sector pay increases, after it was found to be unconstitutional, leaving them waiting for the back pay they argue should now follow.
From the union's perspective, the problem lies in how the money has been handled. According to a union representative, the measure was a money-saving exercise by the provincial government, which never passed that funding on to their employers, meaning the employers are left with nothing to put on the table at the bargaining stage.
For those on strike, the dispute is not only about pay but about the people who depend on them. As one worker put it, they are all there because they care about the families and clients they support, while also recognising that the status quo is simply not sustainable for the system as it stands.
The human cost is already being felt by some families. One parent, who City News chose not to show on camera over privacy concerns, said their nonverbal autistic son is unable to get the essential entry to school program he needs before next year, after the family received a letter saying it had been cancelled.
The provincial government, for its part, insists it is putting significant resources into the sector. Officials said they give a lot of money and have increased it dramatically, adding that the service providers work with the unions and that almost half of the cases have already been completed, with the other half still to be done.
That explanation has not satisfied critics of the government's handling of the file. One accused officials of making up their account, arguing they have had years to make the situation right since Bill 124 was repealed, and that the delay is what has pushed workers onto the picket lines in the first place.