TORONTO — DriveTest officials and the Steelworkers union representing 600 striking Ontario employees have agreed to return to the bargaining table this week. 

The two sides will sit down on Wednesday in an attempt to end the two-week strike that has kept 4,000 people a day from testing for their driver’s licences.

Both new truck drivers and veteran truckers over the age of 65 who are required to take an annual road test have had their appointments cancelled. However, licences that require a retest when they expire are being extended until the end of the strike.

The strike is also taking its toll on driving schools, some of which have had to lay off trainers.

Kim Richardson, President of KRTS Transportation Specialists in Caledonia, Ont. says if the strike is not resolved in the next couple of weeks, KRTS could be laying off about half of its staff in the truck training division.

If entry level truck drivers cannot get their licence, truck company’s freight movement will be impacted at a time when the economy seems be looking up, says Richardson.

As well, laid off workers from other sectors looking to obtain an AZ or DZ licence will remain unemployed, "affecting every tax payer in the country," says Richardson.

He says that he’s heard some dissatisfaction of the Drive Test examiners since the private firm Serco took over road testing operations from the province.