Time for Mayor and Western to stop abusing police force against workers

LONDON, Ontario--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A strike or lockout is a tense situation at the best of times, and public safety is put at risk when employers and politicians are able to use police as a weapon against workers, says CUPE 2361.

Caretaking, landscape service, arena and trades workers at Western University have been on strike since August 30 for liveable wages and higher quality service levels.

“Earlier this week, one single member was arrested over a minor noise complaint that we understand came from the university. About fourteen London police officers came to arrest him. This morning, an individual driving a truck with heavily tinted windows rammed a picketer outside Elborn College. That worker left the scene in an ambulance with head injuries and is now in hospital. Police let the vehicle drive away,” said Steve Pepper, an electric motor mechanic and president of CUPE 2361.

The workers are very concerned that a police service funded by their tax dollars is being used by their employer and the city as a weapon against them.

“Mayor Josh Morgan and City Council need to intervene and put a stop to this gross overreach, they need to stop allowing our city’s police to be used to intimidate strikers. The mayor is on the board of governors at Western and on the police board. We know he has been meeting with all of them, but has thus far refused to meet with the union,” said Chris Yates, an electrician and vice-president of CUPE 2361. “The police should not be interfering in a labour dispute in this biased and dangerous way.”

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