More than 3,000 private sector cleaners in Toronto could be walking off the job soon. A strike vote is scheduled for the members of SEIU Local 2 this Saturday morning in downtown Toronto.
“I have been working as a custodian for over 20 years,” says Gloria Pozo, an employee of Bee-Clean Building maintenance, and part of the union’s bargaining committee. “The pandemic showed everyone why we are considered essential workers, and yet, we are still fighting for fair wages. Now, we are standing strong, ready to claim the dignity and pay we’ve always deserved and close the gap between what we make and a living wage.”
The parties are at an impasse. After five days of bargaining with nine employers at a central bargaining table, including a meeting with a government appointed conciliator, SEIU says cleaning companies are still not willing to provide the increases workers need to support their families. The union requested a no-board report on Monday April 7, 2025.
“We are living at or near the poverty line and struggling to meet basic needs, such as medical expenses, rent and other bills,” says Agatha Christie Neckles who has been cleaning in the city for the last 16 years. Neckles, who is also part of the union’s bargaining committee, works for Hallmark Housekeeping Services.
The workers have made important advances in recent contracts, but they continue to be far below the living wage and many work two or three jobs to make ends meet. Most earn $18.55 per hour while the living wage in Toronto in 2024 was $26 per hour. (https://www.ontariolivingwage.ca/rates)
The janitors, many of whom worked tirelessly through the pandemic without any kind of pandemic pay, clean healthcare facilities, public transportation systems, courthouses, morgues, parcel delivery facilities, police stations, commercial office buildings, shopping malls, food courts, post-secondary institutions, private schools, airports, and more.
The employers include Alpine Building Maintenance, Amphora Maintenance Services Inc., Bee-Clean Building Maintenance, Best Service Pros, BGIS Sustainable Cleaning Solutions Ltd., Commercial Cleaning Services, Compass Canada Support Services Limited o/a Eurest Services, C&W Facility Services, and Hallmark Housekeeping Services.
“Our goal is to bridge the gap between our current wages and the living wage to ensure fair compensation for our labor,” says Agatha.
J4J Toronto Strike Vote
Saturday April 12 @ 10 am
Hyatt Regency Toronto
370 King St. W.
