The head of the B.C. General Employees Union (BCGEU) says job action will escalate to more front-line services after the latest round of talks with the province broke down this week.
The union represents about 34,000 public service workers across the province. More than 15,000 have gone on strike or taken other job action, like overtime bans, since Sept. 2.
Talks with the provincial government resumed Monday but collapsed within a day.
The BCGEU said its latest offer included an eight per cent general wage increase over two years. It said the province came the table with a four per cent increase over two years, up 0.5 per cent from its previous offer, and refused to budge.
“Obviously we’re very disappointed. We don’t think they came there really to bargain, it’s more to provide the illusion of bargaining,” BCGEU President Paul Finch told Vista Radio Wednesday.
Premier David Eby said Wednesday the government’s latest offer was “fair” and “reasonable,” describing it as a five per cent increase over two-years.
Asked about the discrepancy, Finch clarified the province’s offer was for a general wage increase of two per cent per year, plus an additional one per cent for things like classification adjustments.
The union is asking for targeted adjustments on top of four per cent general wage increases each year.
Eby said his government values the work done by public service, but there’s no room in the budget for higher wage increases.
“At the end of the day we’ve got to make sure that taxpayers are protected, as well as the hard-working public service. I believe we can do that, but we need to make sure we’re sitting at the table hammering it out,” he said.
BCGEU members are walking at dozens of picket lines across the province. The strike has impacted services ranging from the Ministry of Citizen’s Services to provincial liquor stores.
The Professional Employees Association launched a concurrent strike with the BCGEU.
It announced Wednesday professional foresters from the B.C. Ministry of Forests have escalated job action, with new picket lines going up in Victoria, Chilliwack, Cranbrook and Dawson Creek.
The PEA said the foresters’ roles include monitoring the impacts of logging, assessing wildfire risks and protecting biodiversity.
PEA members and other supporters joined BCGEU members at a major rally in downtown Vancouver Wednesday.
