Toronto's outside workers to see wages rise 5% over 4 years under new deal

The city of Toronto's outside workers have ratified a new collective agreement that will see workers get a five per cent wage increase over four years, according to their union.

• City of Toronto, outside workers reach tentative deal
• Servicesaffected by indoor workers labour stoppage

The union acknowledgedworkers with 15 years seniority will be protected until 2019 under the collective agreement. Beyond that point, workers will have to renegotiate the labour protection.

CUPE Local 416 said a majority of its 5,400 members, who had been without a contract since the end of 2015, voted in favour of a tentative deal reached last Friday.

Union spokesman Matt Alloway said the voting results would not be released.

He said the agreement followed a "very difficult round of bargaining" in which the union was successful in "beating back most of the harsh cuts the city had tabled."

The outside workers include snowplow operators, paramedics, garbage collectors, parks staff and other employees.

Talks continue, meanwhile, the more than 20,000 inside workers under the CUPE Local 79 banner.

The president of their local union, Tim Maguire, said Wednesday that his members intend to "ramp up" a work-to-rule campaign that began Monday because of the slow pace of the negotiations, but did not provide specifics.