A group that advocates for bus and train passengers in B.C. says it’s time for the province to get involved and bring an end to the transit strike in the Cowichan Valley, which began on Feb. 8.
Brendan Read is a director with Transport Action British Columbia, a non-profit charitable organization dedicated to public transport advocacy, research, and education in the province.
He said the strike, which has affected dozens of transit workers and thousands of members of the community who rely on the service to move about the region, has gone on far too long.
“This is one of the longest transit strikes in B.C. and it’s crazy,” he said.
“BC Transit is a provincial entity and it is the province that largely funds transit, so there’s little that regional districts can do. Isn't it long overdue for the province to step in and settle the strike ASAP in a way that is multi-win for the residents, communities, and workers?”
Read said the NDP government has long been a champion of dealing with climate change and ensuring workers get paid a fair wage, and the province has trust on both sides of the labour dispute and has a responsibility to bring the parties together to find a solution.
“But where’s the action?” he asked. “The government talks the talk, but are they willing to walk the walk?”
The strike, which began on Feb. 8, involves Unifor Local 114, which represents 44 members in the Cowichan Valley who work as transit operators, cleaners and mechanics, and Unifor Local 333, which represents eight HandyDART operators in the region.
Members have been arguing for pay close to that of their counterparts in Victoria, as well as improved access to washroom facilities, designated breaks and more.
A tentative agreement was reached between the union and the employer, Transdev Canada, last month, but the workers overwhelmingly rejected it.
Transdev contracts transit services in the Cowichan Valley from BC Transit.
Union spokesman Gavin McGarrigle said that, as of May 6, there has been no further discussions between the two sides.
“The strike is continuing until we see movement on the issues identified by our members,” he said. “We have heard nothing from the province.”
Transdev also said there is nothing new to report at this point.
At North Cowichan's council meeting on May 7, Mayor Rob Douglas also advocated for BC Transit and the provincial government to get involved in trying to bring an end to the strike.
He said North Cowichan is a large municipality that has many vulnerable people who rely on the transit system to attend medical appointments, buy groceries and access other basic services.
"The challenge here is that, as a municipality, we really have no say in resolving this as it's a dispute between Transdev and Unifor," Douglas said.
"But I have heard from a lot of folks who would like to see BC Transit and the provincial government take a bigger role in resolving this, and it's an argument that makes a lot of sense."
Read pointed out that it isn't just the the out-of-work transit employees and residents of the Cowichan Valley that are suffering as a result of the strike.
“The loss of the Cowichan Victoria Express (CVX) bus route into Victoria means more polluting, congestion-causing, and accident-prone cars over the Malahat and into Langford, Colwood, View Royal, Saanich, and Victoria, contributing to the infamous ‘Colwood Crawl’,” he said.
Bear said many transit users in the Cowichan Valley have switched to other means of getting to their destinations, including ride-sharing, taking taxis and buying vehicles, during the strike and they may not go back to transit when the labour dispute finally ends.
“People’s patterns do change, and sometimes permanently,” he said. “People need access to good transportation so we need to get this strike settled. The province has to come to the table.”
The Ministry of Labour acknowledged that the transit disruption in the Cowichan Valley has impacted residents’ daily lives.
But the ministry said the government respects the integrity of the collective bargaining process, which means allowing the two sides to negotiate an agreement.
"Mediation services have been provided by the Labour Relations Board," the ministry said in a statement.
"Both parties have been encouraged to continue working with the mediator to reach a negotiated settlement at the bargaining table, which is where the best outcomes are achieved."
