I live in the vicinity of the Sistering organization, in front of which has become the place of the OPSEU/SEFPO strike, nearing 10 weeks of protest, has had a profound impact on my life. As someone who lives with a complex mental health reality, the prolonged amplified noise from the demonstrations has significantly worsened my symptoms. Some days I am able to cope and relocate to a quiet 'third space', but on many other days, I find myself frozen, emotionally disturbed by the sirens, encouragement of honking, and blasting music, unable to complete basic tasks or show up for my job which I work from home. I know I am not alone. Many neighbors work from home, study, care for family members, live with disabilities or chronic illness, or are recovering from medical conditions and cannot escape the continuous disruption.

We fully support the fundamental right of workers to organize, engage in collective bargaining, and participate in lawful strike action. We recognize the OPSEU/SEFPO strike as an act of necessary resistance against years of provincial underfunding, wage suppression under Bill 124, and the ongoing devaluation of community and social service workers. However, resistance should challenge those responsible for injustice - not inflict prolonged harm upon other vulnerable communities with little power to change the outcome.

Since the OPSEU/SEFPO strike began on May 25, 2026, residents living immediately adjacent to Sistering have endured continuous amplified repetitive music, horns, sirens, abrupt, stress-inducing whistle-blowing, and slogan chanting throughout the day, with additional evening demonstrations (including a hired DJ on Fridays until 9:30 p.m.) and weekend demonstrations (including Saturday mornings, a day of rest for many). It is medical knowledge that chronic environmental noise is associated with sleep disruption, increased stress, cardiovascular disease, impaired cognitive functioning, and poorer mental health. What began as an act of labor resistance must be recognized by the public community as having become an ongoing public health concern and burden for the surrounding residential communities.

The neighboring community has also become increasingly strained during strike hours. I have personally witnessed vulnerable individuals exit Sistering during protest hours, congregating in nearby laneways and side streets, where some have sat crying out  for hours, wailing in distress, using drugs, vomiting in high traffic areas, smoking, or remaining for extended periods, and return to Sistering after protest hours. While the strike has caused challenges for the residents of the Bloor-Dovercourt neighborhood, it has,  realistically impacted the clients of Sistering even more, who rely upon the organization and its services to be temporary places of refuge amidst the daily struggles of survival within this late-stage of capitalism which threatens the existence and livelihood of all. It is under these conditions that OPSEU/SEFPO continues to call upon the public to stand in solidarity, declaring that its workers are "worth fighting for" (and they are). After ten weeks, however, Sistering's clients and the urbanely dense, working-class residents of this neighborhood have also been left to shoulder (and stumble through) the unintended consequences of this dispute. We, too, are also worth fighting for.

Many of us have supported Sistering for years - as neighbors, volunteers, donors, front line workers, clients and allies. We stand in solidarity with workers seeking justice. At the same time, solidarity cannot mean asking one (more than one!) vulnerable community to bear the physical, psychological, and economic costs of a dispute created by provincial policy. Some staff and clients I have spoken to personally, have also expressed concern that the prolonged strike and Sistering's reliance on temporary staff have affected the quality and continuity of care. 

This petition is not a rejection of the strike. It is a call to redirect its force toward those with the authority to resolve it. If the goal is to pressure the Ontario government, then the greatest pressure should be placed on provincial decision-makers- not on residents who neither created this crisis nor possess the power to end it. Justice should confront power, not displace harm onto neighboring communities.

We respectfully ask OPSEU/SEFPO, and the City of Toronto to implement the following measures:

1. Relocate demonstrations, where feasible, to sites directly connected to provincial decision-makers, including Queen's Park (111 Wellesley St. W., Toronto), the Premier's constituency office (Doug Ford, 823 Albion Rd., Unit 110, Etobicoke, ON M9V 1A3), the Office of the Minister of Finance (Peter Bethlenfalvy, Frost Building South, 7 Queen's Park Crescent, Toronto, ON M7A 1Y7), and the Office of the Minister of Labour (David Piccini, 400 University Ave., Toronto, ON M7A 1T7). Bill 124 - the legislation being necessarily resisted -  was introduced by then-President of the Treasury Board Peter Bethlenfalvy. If the objective is to influence provincial policy, demonstrations should, wherever practical, place pressure where the relevant decision-makers work. 
2. Provide advance public notice of demonstrations, including anticipated dates, times, locations, and planned use of amplified sound. Notices should be shared publicly through social media and, where possible, posted within the surrounding neighborhood, allowing residents to make informed decisions to protect their health, work schedules, childcare, responsibilities, and wellbeing.
3. Reduce amplified noise in residential areas, including limiting the prolonged use of horns, sirens, loudspeakers, whistle-blowing, and other amplified sound that directly affects surrounding homes. 
4. Establish regular quiet periods, particularly during early mornings, evenings after 5pm, and weekends, so nearby residents have real opportunities to rest and recover. This should include discontinuing or relocating the Friday evening DJ events to a more appropriate venue, such as a sound contained community center or hall, where workers can gather without disrupting an entire residential neighbourhood. It should also include ceasing strike-related disruptive activity on Saturday mornings, in recognition that this is a weekend period when residents reasonably expect rest, family time, and recovery.
5. Find alternative forms of protest that maintain meaningful pressure on the provincial government while minimizing unintended impacts on Sistering's clients, nearby residents, and the surrounding community.

Workers deserve justice. 

Residents deserve peace, health, and the quiet enjoyment of their homes. 

These values are not in conflict.

By signing this petition, you are supporting a solution that protects both the right to strike and the well-being of the community. Social justice should lift communities up - not force or impose upon one, or several vulnerable communities to bear the burden of another's struggle. Our liberation is bound up in each other's. This longevity of the strike, despite its necessity, requires strong collaboration and communication with the residential community, and effective action, such as relocating to local MPP's offices and Queens park, where the demands of the workers can be most effectively heard by those who can most effectively create the change.  We wish the strikers success and will continue to strongly advocate for the changes outlined above.