After two months of seniors taking the stairs, stalled construction and fears of safety violations, the province-wide elevator technician strike is over.

More than 500 workers in the GTA will return to work by July 10 or sooner, after a new collective agreement was reached on Friday afternoon between the International Union of Elevator Constructors Local 50 and the National Elevator Escalator Association.

A partial end to the strike on June 14 got 300 technicians working on residential construction sites in Toronto, Halton, Peel, York, Durham and the County of Simcoe back to work — the result of a clause in Ontario’s Labour Relations Act.

Elevators in hospitals, nursing homes and apartment towers are not covered by that clause.

The new agreement — which does not require a vote — includes a wage increase for the next three years consistent with other construction trades in the province.

“We’re satisfied the deal is done. We got what we asked for and we were able to protect the key elements of the contract,” says union spokesperson Marcel Wieder. “We’re going to get back on the tools as soon as we can.”

The new contract provides more control for employers hiring from the union, says NEEA spokesperson Patrick Moran. The association represents KONE, Otis, Schindler and ThyssenKrupp Elevator.

“We’re happy to have our people coming back to work,” he said.

During the two-month strike period around 95 per cent of elevators were operational at any one given time across the province, he said. Usually less than 1 per cent of elevators are down.

The companies used replacement workers to fill in during the strike — the longest of its kind since a near six-month nationwide strike in 1972.

Maybe the elevator workers were underpaid, maybe they weren’t.

But it’s of no consolation for those of us who live in condos, and/or work in high-rise buildings.

I’m not crying poor here – I’m an able-bodied human.

But what about the elderly?  What about the handicapped?

I can’t blame the elevator union for this.  At least not solely.

I’m wondering why there were no contingency plans in place, specifically from my experience, with the respect to a residential condominium.

We have three elevators here at 112 George Street, and when one has been OUT OF ORDER for two months, and when one is on service for move-ins and move-outs, there is one elevator working for the rest of the south tower.  It often took 10-15 minutes for the elevator, and then, of course, the elevator doors often took 2-3 minutes (or twenty attempts) to close, as the doors kept getting stuck.

Sound familiar?

Did you experience this at work, and at your condo?

We’re all in the same boat, and I’m not saying I’m special.

But I wonder why our condominium corporation didn’t spend some money on a third party to cure our elevator woes?

I’ve served on condo boards before, and I’ve owned in a lot of different buildings.  The worst part about the way boards operate is the “human element,” in that they get to rule with an iron fist.

There’s no reason why the board couldn’t have authorized property management to spend $500, or $5,000, to get an elevator repair-person who was NOT on strike, to come out and fix the darned elevators.

With most condominiums, the cost of repairs are covered in the service agreement, and thus if the elevator union was NOT on strike, it wouldn’t cost the condominium corporation anything extra.

But since the union WAS on strike, in order to fix the elevators, the condominium corporation would have had to make an unforeseen expenditure, and something that was not accounted for in the budget.

My thinking: so the f*** what?

Big deal.

$500, or $5,000.  Get it done.

Consider the “quality of life” you expect to experience, especially when you’re paying taxes, maintenance fees, utilities, etc.  Don’t we live in condos for the easy lifestyle?

I was in the elevator last week, with about a dozen people, as it stopped on every single floor.  I asked the people, “Would you guys pay $2.00 to get this thing fixed?”  They all thought I was nuts for even bothering to ask!

But consider that there are 1,000 residents living at 112-116 George Street, and if every one of them paid a paltry $2.00, we could have got a third party that was NOT on strike to come and service the elevators.

Do you think the board of directors and/or property management thinks like that?

Give me a goddam special assessment for two bucks, I’m fine with it!

You spend two dollars to take the TTC, or on a large coffee.

So in order to NOT have to wait ten minutes for the elevator every single day for two months, wouldn’t you endure that cost?

How about five dollars?

How about ten dollars?

How about twenty dollars?

For twenty dollars – the cost of two drinks at a bar, or the cost of taking a cab from King East to King West – I’d definitely be on board with getting our elevators fixed.

So there are 1,000 residents in my building(s), paying $20 each, and suddenly – there’s a LOT of cash to dedicate toward elevator repairs for two months!

In my experience, condo boards are cheap.  They don’t like spending money, even if it’s not theirs specifically.

But they lose sight of the ultimate goal, which is to maximize the quality of life for the residents, and NOT to salt away every penny into the reserve fund.

Every time I saw an 80-year-old man waiting for the elevator in the past two months, I didn’t get mad at the elevator’s union; I got mad at property management and the board of directors for not thinking outside the box.

People are so afraid of the word “expense” and the term “special assessment,” but sometimes, you have to buckle down, and get the job done.

I spoke to colleagues in other buildings, both residential and office, who said that their elevators were running at full-throttle, and that repair-men were on site.  Clearly, these buildings were being run the way I wish mine was.

Yes, I was frustrated by the inconvenience.  But I’m even more frustrated when there’s low-hanging fruit out there, and somebody is too lazy to outstretch their arm to grab it.

Just wait until the Window Washing Union goes on strike.

“We can’t find ANYBODY to wash windows!  We’re living in our own filth!”