A key labour deadline has been extended until 2 a.m. Sunday as the city and CUPE Local 416 continue to negotiate.

The Ministry of Labour released a statement saying the mediator asked for the extension and both parties agreed.

“At the request of the mediator, the city will continue its efforts to bargain a new collective agreement with (CUPE) Local 416 and will extend the deadline, following which it will implement terms and conditions,” the statement read.

Previously, the city would have been in a legal position to lock out its outside workers, and the union in a legal position to strike at 12:01 a.m. Sunday.

Some of the conditions the city could impose on its outside workers include:

• Changing the so-called “jobs for life” provision to only cover workers with 22 years’ seniority, versus the current 10-year mark.
• Making changes to layoff and recall processes. The city said no CUPE workers have been laid off since 1999.
• Changing the sick–pay plan. The current average number of sick days taken for CUPE workers is 13.4 and the city thinks that is too high.
• Changing benefits coverage. The city will only cover 95 per cent of drug costs, compared to the current 100 per cent. The city will only provide $400 worth of eyeglasses coverage, compared to the current $450.
• Changing policy when it comes to leaves of absence for union unit chairs. The city pays full cost when CUPE’s eight unit chairs leave work to attend union business. The city only wants to pay half.
• Wage hikes of 1.25 per cent for 2012, 1.5 per cent in 2013, 1.75 per cent in 2014 and a 1.75 per cent base wage increase in 2015.

Read full details about those provisions here.

Both sides admit that a lockout by the city or a strike by the union could take several weeks to organize.

On Friday, CUPE 416 president Mark Ferguson said workers received a final offer from the city which he described as “provocative” and “threatening.”

The city defended its offer and took the unusual step of outlining the key points of its proposal that would take effect if no settlement is reached by the deadline.

“Things have swung too far one way to the point where we can’t live with some of the conditions that are in the contract in order to be efficient,” Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday said Friday afternoon.

“I guess the alternative is just to say the heck with it. Let’s live with the waste and live with the bad service and let life go on. But that’s not what we’re about.”

CUPE 416 represents nearly 6,000 workers, including garbage collectors, road and parks employees, animal control officers and paramedics.  In the event of a lockout or strike, 85 per cent of paramedics would stay on the job, but no support staff would clock in for work.