The City of London and CUPE Local 101 returned to the bargaining table Friday, 12 days into a strike by 750 inside workers.
Workers have been striking since May 25, after talks with the city collapsed, and there have been no talks since.
But both sides returned to the table Friday morning, at the urging of the provincial mediator.
The union says unresolved issues include; wages, expanding hours of work to include weekends, changes to how job evaluation disputes are resolved and cutting retirement benefits for employees hired in the future.
The city has offered inside workers raises at one per cent for the next three years and 1.1 per cent in 2018.
Mayor Matt Brown addressed the strike in his weekly newsletter saying, "There will have to be movement and compromise from both parties involved."
But there was little optimism on the picket line that a tentative deal would be reached soon, with many believing the city will continue to push for 'disrespectful' concessions.
Inside workers provide a wide range of services including building and property inspections, bylaw enforcement, tourism, traffic management, roads construction management, recreation programs registration, social services and more.
London's inside workers have been without a contract since December. This is the first inside workers' strike since 1979.
