News

Good news comes rarely these days in Windsor. But hard-hit Windsorites received some yesterday when about 3,500 Chrysler minivan plant workers got their jobs back.

Still, the bad was lurking. The city's municipal workers remained on the picket lines as their 10-week-old strike dragged on, leaving residents of this blue-collar town frustrated.

"With all of this going on with the city and all the rest of it, this [Chrysler] was the only bright spot people could see in the city of Windsor at this point in time," said Rick Laporte, president of Canadian Auto Workers Local 444 in Windsor.

The auto workers were off the job for two months during Chrysler's stay in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The day and afternoon shifts reported back yesterday, while the plant's third shift returns on July 27.

For Windsor, any job growth is welcome. The collapse of the auto industry has pushed the city's unemployment rate to 13.5 per cent, the highest in Canada. General Motors will close its transmission plant next year, and Ford has scaled back operations at its engine plant.

Chrysler's workers are not out of the woods. The company plans to eliminate one shift at its minivan plant.

Despite this, Linda Thurston-Neeley, assistant regional director of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, said some striking municipal workers are pleased their spouses are returning to work at Chrysler.

"There will be some relief for the community that 3,500 people are able to go back to their jobs," she said yesterday.

The 1,800 striking workers are fighting to preserve 50-year-old postretirement benefits for future employees.

Talks unravelled two weeks ago after the union walked away from the bargaining table over information leaked to the media, and then filed a complaint of unfair labour practice against the city with the Ontario Labour Relations Board.

"Members are pretty frustrated. There is a lack of leadership in the City of Windsor," Ms. Thurston-Neeley said. "A true leader would try to find a resolution to a problem. The mayor and council are just saying they're not prepared to move and they're not prepared to look at any other way of trying to resolve the problem."

Helga Reidel, lead negotiator for the city and general manager of corporate services, said the union's request for a new mediator is being reviewed by the provincial government before both sides resume negotiations.