I'm torn about the possibility of an OC Transpo strike.

I admit that when it comes to striking, I usually assume that the employer is being unreasonable and that the workers are getting screwed. While I see a bit of that in the case of OC Transpo, I mostly find their demands, well, insane. Especially considering the cost of bus fare, and how it keeps going up and up.

So, yeah, torn. Particularly when I think about the long walk into work I'll be making tomorrow. Made longer by construction and detours. And possible freezing rain. At the same time, my bus rides have been sucking anyways, so maybe this will be a fun adventure!*

Next week is my last full week of work before I get my holiday on. I am SO relieved. I could probably spend an entire week alternating between the kitchen and snuggling Morty and that would be just fine with me. Morty has been so cuddly since it got colder... He actually lays his head right over my neck when I am napping and practically purrs while he sleeps. While that makes it hard to breathe, it's also really fracking cute. I'll take cute over breathing comfortably for now.

Hiding my BH's Christmas presents is getting increasingly difficult. This is partly due to the layout of the apartment, but also due to the fact that he usually picks up the mail every day. This includes any mysterious packages that come to the house. Bearing company names. And basic product descriptions. BOOOOO.

Regardless. I will just have to deal, because I'm the one who decided to order everything online. I also have one last gift to grab, and it's from a local shop so there is no danger of package spoilers.

My final thought for the day: It's been a while since I bought myself a bottle of Bailey's, so I decided to indulge last week. Did you know that it's not meant to be consumed by the mugful? Who knew...

*DOUBTFUL.

13 comments:

Jennifer said...

You can always hide stuff at my place if you need to. I've got lots of room and I won't fall for any BH trickery about needing to borrow baking ingredients or whatever he might try to get in and snoop.

Stella said...

Huh. That's a BRILLIANT idea. We'll discuss!

Milan said...

Having a transit strike just as the cold fury of Ottawa's winter is being unleashed seems cruel and unusual.

Stella said...

Or perhaps a clever way to get your demands met...

Milan said...

The utilitarian in me is always offended by public sector strikes, since they allow unions to advance their interests by harming the public at large, rather than their employers specifically.

If Nike workers goes on strike, Adidas does a bit better and nobody in societal at large really suffers. When teachers, nurses, and bus drivers go on strike, they effectively hold society for ransom.

NIZAR said...

hai


super


X mass

greetings

Amanda Earl said...

however...Ogre Transpo management treats its drivers deplorably; i'm surprised these strikes aren't more frequent.

Baileys by the mugfull...hmmm i'm having the same issue with rum-laced eggnog.

Tristan said...

“When teachers, nurses, and bus drivers go on strike, they effectively hold society for ransom.”

This is absurd. They hold the employer at ransom - and the employer has obligations to certain interested parties. The fact that the parties the employer has obligations against happen to be the voting base is a factor which distorts the issue - it’s like saying Nike is holding society for ransom because the nike factory strikes and it happens to be in the same electoral district where every single person wears Nikes - the customers will pressure the state to clawback the workers rights and settle the dispute quickly. These are just instances of the public siding with the employer.

But, should the public side with the employer? What do people in general have in common with employers? Everyone I know has a lot more in common with employees than employers, so why people support the employer in disagreements like this just seems to me totally illogical.

Stella said...

Thanks for the comment, Tristan. As I said, I'm conflicted about the strike, but I am also not one to throw my support blindly towards our a-hole of a mayor. He's a douche. We all know that.

I simply found some of OC Transpo's demands surprising, as well as some of the comments from union officials. I'm sure the drivers aren't happy about this situation either, and I can only hope it doesn't last forever.

Anonymous said...

I'm not torn at all.

New drivers start at 60K, the salary list in Ontario actually lists at least two guys at the 105K mark.

That's more than universities grads usually get, more than teachers, more than cops.

And they're being offered a 7% raise.

They say it's about respect not money, and then they're extorting the city when the weather turns bad and exams are about to begin, actively blocking intersections with picket lines. You want respect? Try acting in a respectable way.

Fuck them.

Declare it an essential service so the unions are happy, and then lay every motherfucking one of them off for some recent immigrant who will probably speak better English, be nicer people, and do better work for a much more reasonable wage.

Stella said...

Don't hesitate to tell us how you feel, anon. ;)

Milan said...

Predictably, yet amusingly, I have had a couple of dozen hits today from people Googling various combinations of 'oc transpo' 'strike' and 'fuck.'

I suppose sometimes having foul-mouthed commenters actually brings in some traffic.

Anonymous said...

Know your audience.

I guess they teach that to International Relations students during post docs or something.

;)