With no clear end in sight for the ongoing Sifto Salt Mine strike in Goderich, Huron County Warden Jim Ginn says the two sides need to get back to the bargaining table as soon as possible.
Ginn says that on top of the 370 striking workers, there are others being affected by the strike.
"It's getting to be a concern throughout the county as well because all those wages that used to be going into the Huron County economy are no longer going there so there's other people feeling the repercussions of this as well," he says.
The warden says if the strike continues to drag on the effects could be long-lasting.
"I could go as far as housing prices or small businesses cutting back on hours, or who knows, maybe even businesses closing because of it," says Ginn.
Ginn says a big issue preventing further negotiations is the replacement workers that Kansas-based Compass Minerals continue to bus in.
"That's kind of the sticky point here," he says. "They're still producing and making their profit and moving forward with their business, and yet it's dried up in Huron County and we're not getting anything in payment for the resource they're extracting."
Ginn attended the Unifor public rally in Goderich on June 28, and says the message from the county is that they want to see the workers be able to return to work soon.
"This isn't going to be resolved until they do sit down. So until the two sides sit down and start working away at the issues, you know, this isn't good for anyone," he says. "So, we don't want to see anything escalate here so I would call on both sides to get back to the table and start working this thing out."
The strike has pushed past the ten-week mark.