Local City Woes

If you live in a big city such as Toronto, you would not like to have your local city workers to go on to a strike or two every year for reasons such as pay or sick leave. Although most of us understand that the labour movement has been part of our lives since industrial times, there are reasons to look at why these strikes keep occurring!
Over a year ago, there was a transit strike. Then a few years ago, a garbage strike! Again a long while ago, a strike of garbage again. These past 8 years or so have been a very difficult one for working folks and people that have to face rising prices in general! The standard of living though, is not possible to comprehend. The costs of living goes up, salaries does not go up in the rate along with the costs of living and we have difficulties to catch up with the needs in general!
(don’t worry, I do know the woes of the wealthy too!)
Could these strikes be the beginning of the ever ending cycles of strikes? Are there better ways to express democratically only limiting the effects of the local services?