Montreal cemetery strike

The labour dispute has left more than bodies unburied, with the remains stored at freezing temperatures in an on-site repository, the cemetery said.

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Montreal cemetery strike

The union representing striking maintenance workers at one of the country's biggest cemeteries says a deal has been reached with their employer. Gates at the cemetery have been closed since mid-January, leaving bereaved families unable to visit and sometimes resorting to sneaking through the fence. The cemetery has said the impasse has left more than bodies unburied, with corpses stored at freezing temperatures in an on-site repository. The cemetery says in a news release that it is satisfied with the new collective agreement, which expires in December and was reached with the help of a mediator from the province's Labour Ministry. It says returning workers will focus on cleaning up the grounds so the site can reopen, adding that families of the deceased will be contacted so that they can begin organizing burials. Montreal Deal reached in Montreal cemetery worker standoff that left grieving families shut out The union representing striking maintenance workers at one of the country's biggest cemeteries says a deal has been reached with their employer nearly six months after the standoff began. Social Sharing. Grievers sneaking into Montreal cemetery as labour dispute drags on. Related Stories Video.

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With most workers back on the job after a bitter strike and a major clean-up almost complete, the cemetery says it is ready to finally reopen after being shuttered for most of the past nine months. Cemetery management said it closed the site because it was too dangerous after an April ice storm damaged thousands of trees, with no workers to trim them and remove debris. In July, 91 operations and maintenance workers approved a new contract that expires in Seventeen office staff, off the job since December, are still on strike but the two sides are in negotiations. During the strike, crypt burials and cremations went ahead but in-ground burials were suspended, leaving more than bodies in cold storage. St-Amour said about 50 ground burials have taken place over the past two weeks.

A strike that has kept the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges cemetery in Montreal closed for more than six months came one step closer to ending on Thursday. After a marathon negotiating session overnight Wednesday, the parties — the cemetery workers and management — agreed to accept the recommendation of a government-appointed mediator, according to Labour Minister Jean Boulet. The development was the first sign in months that the strike, which has shuttered the cemetery and frustrated families who have been unable to bury relatives or visit their loved ones' graves since January, could be nearing an end. Dufault said Wednesday that the main sticking point in contract talks had been management's refusal to budge on two of the workers' demands: a pay increase that includes back pay and the workers' desire to see staffing levels maintained or increased. During the shutdown, the cemetery has become overgrown and unkempt.

Montreal cemetery strike

Grievers in Montreal issued pleas on Sunday for the Quebec government to take action as a months-long standoff between workers and management at Canada's largest graveyard drags on. A strike by more than maintenance and office workers has kept the Notre-Dames-des-Neiges cemetery's wrought-iron gates shut to the public since mid-January, with the exception of a few days in the spring. The labour dispute has left more than bodies unburied, with the remains stored at freezing temperatures in an on-site repository, the cemetery said. Jimmy Koliakoudakis, whose mother died in February, said family members are "suffering. Nancy Babalis said she still comes nearly every weekend to visit the plot of her year-old son, who died 10 years earlier minus a day. A tentative agreement between management and the Cemetery Maintenance Employees' Union fell through last month. Both sides had agreed to support the recommendation of the province's head mediator, Quebec Labour Minister Jean Boulet said on June 15, dubbing the would-be deal an "excellent development. Groundskeepers have been without a collective agreement since , and office workers — who kicked off the strike in September — haven't had one in place since Cemetery spokesperson Daniel Granger said he hoped to find a resolution "as soon as possible. Waist-high weeds and downed branches from an April ice storm cover the cemetery grounds, which sprawl across Mount Royal's north side.

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Last Updated June 29, pm. Increase article font size. How can the Canadiens acquire a top-six forward? Spring footwear styles that will have you welcoming the new season with a lighter step. More on Canada. During that time, only people attending those ceremonies will be granted access to the site. Quebec mom says Air Canada bungled her family vacation because they overbooked the flight. A six-week-old baby was located inside a vehicle involved in an alleged impaired driving collision in Etobicoke, says the OPP. String of drug-related deaths prompts police warning in N. Recommended from Editorial. The labour dispute has left more than bodies unburied, with the remains stored at freezing temperatures in an on-site repository, the cemetery said. Comments Close comments menu.