Hudak Says Refusal of OPPA Demands Led to Attack Ads

This article was last updated on April 16, 2022

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Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader, Tim Hudak, has recently mentioned in a statement that Ontario Provincial Police Association is gearing up against him because he refused to mend his plans as per their demands. He revealed that the association proposed a special deal to release them from a two-year wage freeze if he’s elected.

According to Hudak, the OPPA videos criticizing him are a reaction of his straightforward rejection to the rank and file association that they too would have their wages frozen like everyone else in the public sector if he forms the next government on June 12. He explained on Tuesday that “they wanted me to give them a wink and a nod that they will be exempted from the wage freeze . . . and I said no. When they said, ‘We might take political action,’ I wouldn’t cave.” He added that “I support our front line officers but I think fair is fair; no exemptions, no back doors, no special deals.”

On the other hand, OPPA president Jim Christie mentioned on Wednesday that it’s not about the zero increases. Instead, he explained that “we have taken zeros before but we believe in freely negotiated collective bargaining.” Highlighting that police officers in Ontario are not allowed to strike, he pointed out that “we are worried about where Tim plans to take us as an organization . . . including his plan to move all new hires to a new defined contribution pension plan … with no consultation, no discussion.”