Update -The New Sudbury location will remain operational Monday to Friday from 9 am to 6 pm, with help from management and non-bargaining units.
Many local CIBC customers will have to resort to using the nearest bank machine or do their banking online or over the phone, as picket lines went up at all five branches in the City of Greater Sudbury as of 8 am Monday.
Jim Kmit, a staff representative for the United Steel Workers of America, indicated that 62 full-, part-time, and casual employees rejected the bank's final offer Wednesday night by 52 per cent.
He said he believes “the ball is in the bank's court now” and said that no new talks are scheduled at this point. He noted that the key reason for the strike is that the bank didn't make a fair wage offer. Other issues include the employees' desire for the bank to pay 100 percent of the premiums for their medical benefits, instead of paying only a portion of those benefits.
