THUNDER BAY — The layoffs announced Wednesday for hundreds of Bombardier workers in Thunder Bay immediately resulted in federal and Ontario politicians casting blame upon each other.
550 employees will be off the payroll starting in November.
Each government accuses the other of playing politics over the heads of the affected workers and their families.
At a news conference at a Premiers' conference in Saskatoon, Premier Doug Ford accused the federal government of "sitting on their hands" while Ontario waits for funding for a transit expansion in Toronto that could result in new orders for the Thunder Bay plant.
"We put forward one of the biggest transit plans in North America, $28.5 billion, and we need the federal government to sign it...We haven't heard hide or hair," Ford said.
Noting that he intervened recently to free up $130 million of provincial funding to bump up an order for 36 bi-level commuter cars from Thunder Bay, the Premier said "We put our money where our mouth is. Where is their money? They have done absolutely nothing to support these people in Thunder Bay."
Patty Hajdu, a federal cabinet minister and MP for Thunder Bay-Superior North, said it's Ford who must take responsibility.
She said $8.3 billion in federal infrastructure money was available over the past year for transit projects in the GTA, but Ontario has yet to ask for it.
Hajdu charged that Ford's "indecision on spending that money" has created "chaos, confusion and paralysis."
The Thunder Bay MP said the Premier's "impulsive decisions" regarding transit in the GTA have stalled progress on projects that were moving ahead prior to the last provincial election.
In Saskatoon, Ford alleged that it is the feds who are "not giving certainty right now...We don't want to play politics. I don't want to argue with the federal government. But sign the deal, and let's get things moving,"
Hajdu called the Premier's comments "ridiculous," adding "how can you sign a cheque without an application?"
François-Philippe Champagne, federal Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, echoed his colleague in saying "after one-and-a-half years of repeating the same message...to my provincial counterpart, I'd say, for once, the vision is clear. The money is there. Now what we need is action."
But Ontario's minister of Economic Development, Job Creation & Trade, Vic Fedeli, said Hajdu needs to "push her cabinet colleagues to approve a plan that Bombardier can bid on...and keep good-paying jobs in Thunder Bay."
"She's been missing in action, not engaging with her provincial counterparts," he alleged.
Thunder Bay-Superior North MPP Michael Gravelle also weighed in, calling Bombardier's decision devastating for workers and for the community.
"This must be countered with strong action to ensure that new contracts return the plant to full production levels," Gravelle said.
The Liberal MPP said the provincial government is obligated to play a significant role in dealing with what he described as "this crisis."
Thunder Bay-Atikokan New Democrat MPP Judith Monteith-Farrell said the layoff announcement is causing anxiety across the region.
Monteith-Farrell accused the Ford government of dropping the ball, and warned that without decisive action Ontario risks losing its capacity to build transit vehicles.
