The province’s longest running transit strike shows no sign of ending soon.
The unionized employees of Transdev, which is contracted by BC Transit to operate bus and handyDART service in the Cowichan Valley, voted on Thursday to reject the latest contract offer.
Unifor says the proposed settlement failed to close the wage gap with transit workers in Victoria and Vancouver.
In the same vote on August 7, the workers also voted against accepting binding arbitration.
The strike began on February 8 and has now lasted for six months.
The differences between the two sides are over wages that Unifor says are lower than transit workers in Victoria and Nanaimo, break times for drivers, and pensions.
Unifor says it remains ready to return to negotiations, and is again calling on the BC Government to reform the current system of contracting out services, which the union says creates systemic inequities across the system.
Unifor Local 114 represents transit operators, cleaners and mechanics. Local 333BC represents HandyDART accessible transit operators.
As the strike reached the half-year mark, the Chair of the Cowichan Valley Regional District released a statement expressing concern over the impacts of the ongoing disruption to service.
Kate Segall says many residents rely on public transit and face undue hardships from the lack of service.
She says regular transit users have missed medical appointments, lost jobs, dealt with education interruptions, faced risks while hitchhiking, and endured increased loneliness and isolation.
Segall says non-profit organizations have expressed concern over a significant decline in the wellbeing of vulnerable residents who are not receiving supports.
The CVRD says it has heard directly from residents and families across the region regarding the impacts and urges the two sides to reach an agreement to restore transit service in the Cowichan region.
