Region chairman Bill Fisch urged the sides, which include the Amalgamated Transit and three York Region contracted operators, "to act in good faith and resolve the ongoing YRT/Viva service disruption."
About 560 drivers and mechanics from York Region Transit and Viva walked off the job on Oct. 24 over wages, halting service on a good portion of the routes in the region directly north of Toronto. Limited service is offered on major routes.
An estimated 60 per cent of the transit system in York Region is affected, mainly in Markham, Richmond Hill, Newmarket, and Aurora. Some 44,000 pasengers are affected by the dispute.
"The victims of this labour disruption include transit riders, bus operators and mechanics, families, students, the elderly and business owners," Fisch wrote in a letter.
According to Miller Transit, which operates 51 of the routes in the region, the union is seeking wage increases of more than 20 per cent over the three-year period, including a 16-per cent pay hike in the first year alone. Miller offered 13.5 per cent over five years.
Fisch called on the operators to return to work while the two sides meet to put an end to the hardship the strike is causing.
The sides have only met once since the strike began, but it produced little progress.
"It is astonishing that given this hardship, the parties have not negotiated meaningfully for weeks. I am sending an open letter to all parties reminding you of your obligation to bargain in good faith and end this service disruption," Fisch said in the letter.
Ontario rejected calls recently to consider back-to-work legislation to end the strike. Earlier this year the government designated the much larger Toronto Transit Commission an essential service in March 2011.
