A major Montreal blue-collar union has elected a new president, it announced just days after threatening labour action during the Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix.
Negotiations between the city and its 5,000 blue-collar workers, represented by CUPE Local 301, have been stuck in a deadlock since the union contract ended in December 2024. Tensions have steadily mounted in recent months, with blue-collar workers striking for three days in April and for 24 hours in February.
“We are continuing negotiations with the same goal in mind. We will not accept a subpar agreement,” new CUPE 301 president Nicolas De Ciccio said in a statement Thursday. He replaces Jean-Pierre Lauzon, who held the position for three years.
During the April strike, Lauzon described the city’s offer for an 11-per-cent salary increase over five years as “indecent” and “illogical,” saying the workers will accept no less than 20 per cent.
De Ciccio has worked for the City of Montreal since 2011 and has been active with CUPE 301 since 2014, according to the statement.
He promises the transition will take place as “smoothly and as quickly as possible,” and union members will be kept up-to-date on the status of negotiations for a new collective agreement.
Asked whether the mayor is hopeful the change in leadership will mean a breakthrough in negotiations, a spokesperson for Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada said Ferrada texted the new president to welcome him, and thanked the predecessor for his work.
The mayor’s office added they are not aware when the next negotiation meeting will take place.
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