While transit riders in the Fraser Valley are still without bus service, passengers in Metro Vancouver will be avoiding job action taken by bus drivers.
Unifor said the union, its bus operators and staff have reached a tentative agreement with Coast Mountain Bus Company.
“Transit workers kept Metro Vancouver moving throughout the pandemic. They have clearly demonstrated their value to the Lower Mainland economy and deserve fair wages and benefits,” said Unifor national president Lana Payne.
Details of the new deal will not be released until it’s ratified but Unifor said the contract addresses concerns about working conditions and wages keeping pace with inflation.
“Transit workers have been helping lead the way for public sector compensation packages during a period of steep inflation increases,” said Gavin McGarrigle, Unifor western regional director.
“Their leadership will help set the bar high for other sectors.”
The agreement quashes any possibilities of a repeat of 2019 when bus workers went on job action, but a full-scale strike was avoided due to a last-minute deal.
“I’d like to congratulate both parties for working together and reaching an agreement,” Michael McDaniel said, Coast Mountain Bus Company’s president and general manager.
“The agreement will go through a ratification process in the coming weeks before becoming final.”
The ratification meeting is scheduled for April 12.
In Fraser Valley, riders have been without bus service for weeks.
First Transit workers, especially bus drivers, are on an “indefinite strike” as CUPE 561 and their employer has not been able to reach a deal.
More than 200 members of CUPE Local 561 walked off the job, affecting all bus services in Abbotsford, Mission, Agassiz-Harrison, Chilliwack and Hope, although essential HandiDart trips can still be booked.
The union said its members, who work for a company that contracts service to BC Transit, have no pension and make 32 per cent less than bus drivers and other staff elsewhere in Metro Vancouver’s transit system.
— with files from Canadian Press