The head of a union that represents more than 10,000 TTC workers has resigned from his post following a prolonged battle with the local’s parent organization.
The board of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 113 announced on Friday that it had accepted the resignation of Bob Kinnear, effective immediately.
The resignation comes after Kinnear attempted to bring about a vote that would have given union members a choice on whether to remain affiliated with the U.S.-based ATU.
That effort prompted the ATU to place the local under a trusteeship on Feb. 3, temporarily ousting Kinnear from his role, however an Ontario Superior Court judge later issued an injunction which had the effect of reinstating Kinnear.
Kinnear then sought to have an ATU official thrown in jail for allegedly organizing an emergency board meeting, where members passed a vote of no-confidence in his leadership.
“With this distraction behind us, we’re now focused on what matters most – representing Toronto’s hardworking transit workers,” ATU Local 113 Secretary-Treasurer Kevin Morton said in a press release issued on Friday. “More united than ever, we’re moving forward to fight the TTC’s plans for alcohol and drug testing and to prepare for next year’s important collective bargaining.”
The ATU had previously accused Kinnear of "single-handedly and secretly" attempting to engineer a split with the union. For his part, Kinnear had said that he was just attempting to give members a chance to vote on their affiliation. He accused the ATU of attempting to suppress democracy.
In the press release issued on Friday, ATU Local 113 said that a Canadian Labour Congress investigation that was initiated by Kinnear has now ended. The investigation could have led to a vote on ATU Local 113's affiliation with the ATU.
CP24 has reached out to Kinnear for comment but has not yet heard back from him.
