Production of Global 5500s, 6500s, and 7500s in Toronto has temporarily stopped after 1,350 Bombardier employees represented by the Unifor Local 112 and 673 unions went on strike yesterday at midnight. The union and company did not reach an agreement by the 11:59 p.m. strike deadline on Saturday, stopping work at the Global aircraft assembly center at Toronto Pearson International Airport. Bombardier opened this new $500 million aircraft production facility early last month.
According to the union, its bargaining committee members are “working towards an agreement and both parties remain committed to continuing the bargaining process.” Negotiations between Unifor and Bombardier continued Saturday night into midday yesterday before resuming this morning.
A Bombardier spokesman told AIN that “discussions are progressing [and] we are keeping our focus solely on that. What we can say at this stage is that Bombardier is continuing to negotiate with all parties. Our collective goal remains to swiftly reach a mutually beneficial agreement.”