BCGEU escalates job action across British Columbia
By Contributor
he BC General Employees’ Union (BCGEU) has escalated job action today, expanding picket lines to multiple new locations across the province.
New picket line sites as of Tuesday, September 9:
- Victoria: 976 Meares Street; and 617 Government Street
- Nanaimo: 2080 & 2100 Labieux Road
- Surrey: 10475 138 Street; and 14323 57 Avenue
- Kamloops: 441 & 447 Columbia Street
- Williams Lake: 640 Borland Street
- Kelowna: 478 Bernard Avenue
- Cranbrook: 117 10th Avenue South
- Nelson: 566 Stanley Street
- Fort St. John: 10003 110th Avenue
- Smithers: 3726 Alfred Avenue
A full list of active picket lines, including these new sites, can be found here. Please note that due to air quality concerns, Prince George and Williams Lake will be virtual pickets until further notice.
Job action now spans a total of 22 sites with more than 4,000 workers on strike. Picket locations continue to focus on government operations, with minimal impact on the public. At the same time, BCGEU members working at these locations are needed by the B.C. economy more than ever – they’re required to move resource projects forward. Without them, environmental assessments and permits don’t happen, projects stall and communities wait.
Today marks the beginning of the second week of job action in response to a breakdown in negotiations for a new collective agreement that covers over 34,000 BCGEU members employed by the provincial public service. These workers—ranging from wildfire firefighters, social workers, correctional officers and sheriffs to administrative professionals and conservation officers—are fighting for competitive wages, fair access to telework, a modernized contract and a limit on non-union managers.
The union’s proposal is for a two-year agreement that lifts wages for members at the lower end of the pay scale, introduces targeted occupational adjustments, and incorporates bonuses into base salaries to provide lasting improvements. The proposal is designed to help workers cope with the affordability crisis while strengthening the public services British Columbians rely on. On average, BCGEU public service workers make about 2.7% below the overall provincial weekly average wage. For example, the pay for wildfire fighters tops out at $56,546/year.
“The 4% and 4.25% increases that BCGEU members have proposed are fair and reasonable,” said Paul Finch, BCGEU president and chair of the public service bargaining committee. “The government’s latest offer—just 1.5% in the first year and 2% in the second—falls far short of addressing members’ needs and is essentially telling the public to expect cuts in the services we all rely on.”
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