Ontario and Ottawa trade blame over Bombardier layoffs
(The Star Fashion & Style)

Premier Doug Ford and the federal government traded barbs after the bombshell news that Bombardier plans to lay off half of all workers at its Thunder Bay rail car plant, and amid union fears more job losses are on the horizon.Federal labour minister and MP for Thunder Bay Patty Hajdu said Ford’s Progressive Conservative government in Ontario failed to put forward any concrete proposals that would have freed up federal infrastructure money, and she placed the responsibility for the 550 layoffs squarely on the Ontario premier’s shoulders.On Wednesday morning from Saskatoon — where Ford is attending the annual summer gathering of provincial and territorial leaders — the premier accused the federal government of “playing politics� and dragging its heels on approving funding for the province’s $28.5 billion transit plan.“I’ve not seen hide nor hair of the federal government. All of a sudden they come out with a comment� criticizing the Ontario government for not acting to protect Bombardier jobs, he told reporters.“They want to play politics. I’m not here to play politics with the federal government. I’m here to protect the workers in Thunder Bay and I think we’ve proved that.�Read more:Bombardier to lay off half the 1,100 workers at Thunder Bay rail plantBombardier says it can deliver final 38 new streetcars by year’s endHowever, Hajdu shot back at Ford in an interview with the Star.“We’re not the ones responsible for submitting an application, are we? We’re the ones with the billion dollars on the table. So you know what? He (Ford) should get back to work. He decided to hold off on returning to work until after the federal election, for god’s sake. How about he get back to work and solve this problem for the workers of Thunder Bay!�Hajdu — and Unifor President Jerry Dias — said in separate interviews the Thunder Bay Bombardier p ...