Sewage smell outside Hamilton water treatment plant concerns striking workers

For 55 water and wastewater operators in Hamilton, being on strike stinks — literally.

Workers with the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 772 have been off the job since May 14, picketing at different locations including the major wastewater treatment plant on Woodward Avenue. 

On Tuesday, the union shared a message on social media stating that an odour-detection system at the plant had failed and might be affecting the Parkview neighbourhood where the plant is located. 

CBC Hamilton visited the picket line Tuesday afternoon and detected a stink along Woodward Avenue in front of the plant that was particularly strong by the plant's north gate. Workers on strike said that's unusual and a sign of something not working correctly.

"It's raw sewage. That's what you're smelling," Greg Hoath, a business manager with the union told CBC Hamilton. "Normally you don't smell anything."

While they don't have first-hand knowledge of what's happening inside, Hoath said based on what they know about the plant, the smell is a sign that things inside are not running as they should without his colleagues at their posts. Hoath and his fellow members say they worry there could be an important system failure with negative consequences for the community's health and the environment. 

City says 'no risk' to water safety

Nick Winters, who directs Hamilton Water, told CBC Hamilton there have been "no abnormal odour issues at the Woodward facility in recent weeks and all of the facility's odour control systems are operating properly."

Wastewater treatment "inherently generates odours," Winters said in an email Wednesday. "On average, we receive 13 odour complaints annually at the Woodward facility. Odours can be more prominent when winds are blowing from Lake Ontario westerly across the city."

The city has also said the strike poses "no risk" to the quality of safety of drinking water, and services continue uninterrupted.

"We want to assure residents that contingency plans are in place, and city staff are working hard to maintain safe and uninterrupted operation of our water and wastewater systems," Marnie Cluckie, Hamilton's city manager said in an email. "This includes redeploying non-union management staff with years of experience."

Winters added that staff have "worked diligently" to prepare for a strike scenario with contingency plans reviewed and approved by Ontario's Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks.

"Although there are currently 55 unionized members currently on strike, it's important to note that the city's water and wastewater facilities normally have about 15 operators working on any given weekday, with a significantly smaller number working overnight and on holidays," he said. 

CBC Hamilton could not detect a sewage smell in the neighbourhood immediately east of the plant Tuesday. Area councillor Tammy Hwang (Ward 4) said her office had received one complaint about the smell that day.

"We respect the [union members] who are using their legal right to strike and we hope that all can come to a fair agreement/resolution as soon as possible," she said.

Residents who would like to complain about the smell from the plant can call 905-546-2424, extension 1086, she added.  

Robert Haller, who directs the Canadian Water and Wastewater Association, told CBC Hamilton he thinks managers are capable of maintaining basic services.

Haller represents the City of Hamilton to the federal government and said he has no comment on the labour dispute. 

"Longer term maintenance, growth and larger repair is best handled by the more specialized operators, but I think the residents of Hamilton can feel assured that their water is safe," he said in an email.

"These managers weren't born as managers – most worked their way up through the utilities, most being fully qualified engineers."

Managers would be expected to understand the duties of their crews, he said, adding most systems are highly automated and monitored.

"This will mean long hours for management, but I would expect that many a manager is still capable of jumping into a ditch to repair a broken pipe if necessary."

Talks break down

A week into the strike, morale among members was high, Hoath said, noting the union had a 100 per cent support for its strike vote and were prepared to walk.  

"There is absolutely no way they're not struggling," he said of the managers doing operators' jobs. "We know how hard it is."

Hoath said he hasn't heard from the city about more negotiations since around the second day of the strike, when they told him they weren't prepared to discuss money.

"That's the only issue on the table. So, there was nothing to talk about," he said.

Striking workers are calling on the City of Hamilton to close a pay gap they say leaves some of them earning about $4 less than another group of workers with fewer certifications.

That group can reach their highest pay rate in fewer years and with fewer training hours, members say. The union wants a six-per-cent pay increase over four years to close the gap. Members say that would cost the city around $1,000 per day.

The city said on its website, in an update on May 15, that its "offer was consistent with agreements negotiated with other City employee groups" and that it "remains committed to the collective bargaining process."

Tom Shields, an operator who works at a facility in Dundas, said he normally oversees over 70 pump stations and eight combined sewer overflows between Ancaster and Puslinch, Ont. 

Shields was part of a picket line around city hall on Tuesday morning. He said every worker on the line would rather be doing their job than striking, "but if we don't, every year we get further and further behind, so it's not fair."

Water issues in east Hamilton

This week, striking workers also pointed to maintenance issues in east Hamilton yesterday as evidence of the city's inability to manage the system without them. But the city disputed that claim. 

Winters said Wednesday Hamilton Water repaired a watermain break near Mohawk Road E., and Upper Sherman Ave that morning. He said the city is investigating additional watermain breaks in this same area today at 872 and 894 Upper Gage Ave that may have caused some residents to lose water pressure.

"Unfortunately watermain breaks do occur periodically for various reasons. The city can confirm there is no relation to these watermain breaks and the ongoing... labour disruption," Winters said.

He noted Hamilton Water is also reporting lower water pressure for some residents in Stoney Creek but said that issue is related to planned watermain work and is also unrelated to the strike.