The city and the union representing part-time inside workers reached a new tentative contract Friday, averting a potential strike.
The union will recommend that its members vote in favour of this new deal, CUPE Local 79 president Tim Maguire told reporters Friday afternoon.
Maguire said the new deal came after "four or five hours" of negotiations with the city earlier in the day.
The vote to ratify the new contract will likely be set for Tuesday.
All inside workers voted on a contract deal Wednesday. Out of the four bargaining units that voted, two units accepted the agreement and two did not.
The unit that represents part-time workers reached this new deal Friday.
The other bargaining unit that did not accept the deal represents employees who work in city-owned senior care centres. Those workers are considered an essential service and cannot strike, so their contract will be settled through arbitration.
Though this new agreement averts an inside workers' strike, Maguire said he did not see it as a win for the workers, saying that the city should have taken a more collaborative bargaining approach from the beginning, rather than waiting until after a strike vote to be serious about its negotiations.
"We're both going to have to work hard on that relationship to get back to a place where workers are respected," Maguire said.
Mayor Rob Ford said he was proud his negotiating team and their hard work.
"I'm delighted. It's absolutely fabulous news for the taxpayers, and for the union," Ford said.
This final contract agreement with indoor workers marks the end to months of bargaining between the city and various unions.
This contract means Toronto can now enjoy a period free from labour disruption, the mayor said.
"We won't have any labour disruption for the next four years," Ford said.
Meanwhile, library workers returned to their jobs Friday after a 10-day strike ended when the union voted to accept a new contract agreement on Thursday.
Now that this labour challenge is over, Ford said he's looking forward to the next big challenges: a new budget and finding further efficiencies at City Hall.
