This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Thunder Bay, Ontario • About 900 unionized employees at Bombardier's light rail plant in Thunder Bay, Ontario, are on strike after failing to reach an agreement with management about pension changes and benefit reductions.
Unifor's national president Jerry Dias says there was "no meaningful discussion" leading up to Monday's strike deadline.
Dias says Bombardier wants to make changes to pensions and benefits that are unacceptable to the employees and are similar to demands that caused a brief strike in 2011.
Bombardier spokesman Marc-Andre Lefebvre says the company believes it has offered Unifor employees a good contract proposal that provides for well-paid jobs.