PEI Some striking Charlottetown water and sewer workers have been served trespass orders after a rally outside a Charlottetown city council meeting last week. The union says police served orders to four strikers and a union representative stating they are banned from Charlottetown City Hall.Police confirm trespass notices were served to 5 people for ‘causing a disturbance’Connor Lamont · CBC News · Posted: Oct 22, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 5 hours agoCUPE Local 830 president Robbie Howatt says Coun. Bob Doiron should have declared a conflict of interest before a vote during a Charlottetown city council meeting last week. (Connor Lamont/CBC)Some striking Charlottetown water and sewer workers have been served trespass orders after more than 50 union members and supporters rallied outside a city council meeting last week. In a news release Tuesday, CUPE Local 830 said police showed up to the homes of four strikers and a union representative with orders stating they are banned from city hall. The release goes on to say the notices were in response to striking workers shouting their disappointment toward Mayor Philip Brown for voting against a notice of motion to potentially meet with the union. Charlottetown Police Services confirmed the trespass notices were handed out over the weekend to five people for “causing a disturbance” during the council meeting.The water and sewer workers have been on strike for two and a half months, demanding better job security and wages. The city has since hired private contractors to do their work.Robbie Howatt, president of CUPE Local 830, received one of the trespass notices. He was also one of the workers who attended last week’s council meeting.”For them to ban me is just ludicrous,” he said. “It was more of a boil over of frustration. We’re really frustrated right now.”Conflict of interest?CUPE also alleges a city councillor did not declare a conflict of interest before voting on that motion to meet with the union.The vote ended in a tie, with Coun. Bob Doiron being one of the councillors to vote against it. Charlottetown Mayor Philip Brown broke the tie by saying no to a meeting with the striking workers. The union said Doiron, who is also chair of the water and sewer committee, should not have taken part in the vote because of a conflict of interest. Since he didn’t declare the conflict, his vote shouldn’t count, Howatt said.Charlottetown water and sewer workers have been striking for two and half months. (Connor Lamont/CBC)A letter from the union to the city alleges Doiron’s son-in-law is the majority shareholder of Landmark Construction, one of the private contractors the city hired to do some of the water and sewer work during the strike. It adds that Doiron’s daughter also works for the company. “If he wouldn’t have taken the vote, that would have made it a 5-4 vote, we would have had our meeting with council and everything would have been good,” Howatt said. “We would have been happy.” This vote did not involve handing out contracts to private companies. Howatt said Doiron has recused himself many times in previous votes where such work was being awarded.The city said it is aware of the allegation of a conflict of interest and is reviewing the matter. Doiron told CBC News he will not comment until the city has completed its review. ABOUT THE AUTHORConnor Lamont is a news reporter at CBC Prince Edward Island, based in Charlottetown. He previously worked at CBC News Network in Toronto and is a graduate of Toronto Metropolitan University.
Union calls ban of Charlottetown water and sewer workers from city hall ‘ludicrous’
