Ontario’s 12,000 unionized plumbers and steamfitters are headed for their first strike in more than three decades.

Workers represented by the Ontario Pipe Trades Council held a vote May 30, overwhelmingly rejecting the final offer tabled by the Mechanical Contractors Association of Canada just a few days before.

In a May 31 release, OPTC – part of the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry – said the contractor association refused to budge on its demand for a 40-hour work week for plumbers and steamfitters.

“It would be a misnomer to call this round of talks a negotiation,” said Ross Tius, chairman of the OPTC bargaining committee in the release. “We have met with the contractors several times over the past few months, and they have not been willing to compromise or change their position. They want to drastically change the working conditions of our members, and that is unacceptable to us.”

UA Local 46 posted the results of the vote on Facebook May 30, with more than 96 percent of member rejecting the offer.

“Our ICI members have sent us a clear message,” the association stated.

For more information, contact office@OPTC.org.