No end in sight for B.C. public sector strike, with 'major escalation' expected Thursday

No end in sight for strike

Photo: Michael Potestio

Striking BCGEU members hold signs while walking along Columbia Street on Wednesday morning outside the Kamloops Law Courts.

UPDATE: 3:27 p.m.

The head of one of B.C.’s two striking public sector unions says she is deeply disappointed the government doesn't recognize the value of its own public servants, and she has no choice but to put all the government licensed professionals represented by the association on strike.

It means more than 1,600 professionals — including government engineers, foresters, lawyers and geoscientists — will be on the picket lines, although some of its workers had already joined the B.C. General Employees' Union in its strike action that started Sept. 2.

The statement from the Melissa Moroz, head of the Professional Employees Association, said it's the longest job action in the union's 51-year history — which underscores the seriousness of the dispute and the frustration of workers at the bargaining table.

The BCGEU said in a statement Wednesday that the two unions are are united in calling on the B.C. government to respect and fairly compensate public service employees whose work keeps B.C. operating.

"This is now the seventh week of job action by public service workers represented by both the BCGEU and the PEA, with over 1,000 PEA members and nearly 25,000 BCGEU members on picket lines across the province," the statement said.

"The BCGEU continues to uphold all essential service requirements but warns that government inaction is deepening the impact on communities across the province."

Professional employee members work across the province in several ministries, including Health, Attorney General, Mining and Water, Land and Resource Stewardship.

In a separate statement, B.C. Conservative children and family development critic Rosalyn Bird said the ongoing public service workers strike is disrupting applications and payment processing for those relying on social assistance and disabilities programs.

Bird also criticized the NDP government's fiscal management, saying the growing debt and deficit levels are hampering B.C.'s ability to serve its residents.

“When a woman, a former child in care, or any ordinary B.C. resident can’t access their monthly life-enabling supports because the system buckled under the weight of government failure, collateral damage among average British Columbians is inevitable,” she said in the statement.

The PEA has previously said that some of its workers are essential and would remain on the job, such as hydrologists with the B.C. River Forecast Centre and child and youth psychologists with the Ministry of Children and Family Development.

— The Canadian Press

ORIGINAL STORY: 12:36 p.m.

One of two B.C. public sector unions on strike right now says talks with the provincial government remain stalled.

The Professional Employees Association — which represents 1,800 licensed professionals in B.C. such as engineers, foresters, lawyers and geoscientists — says it returned to the bargaining table on Tuesday.

“Talks broke down quickly after the government failed to table a revised general wage offer or any new monetary proposals,” the union said Wednesday.

The government is offering a 3.5 per cent wage increase over two years.

“The PEA maintains that government licensed professionals deserve a fair deal and the BC government needs to value their expertise,” said the union.

About 1,000 PEA members are currently on strike, a figure that is expected to climb to all 1,800 on Thursday when the union announces a “major strike escalation.”

In addition to the PEA, 25,000 members of the B.C. General Employees' Union are walking the picket lines. The unions have been coordinating their strike action, but are negotiating with the government separately.

The BCGEU strike has impacted liquor distribution in B.C. and all Service BC locations.

The BCGEU says the province has offered it a five per cent wage increase over the next two years. The union is asking for eight per cent over the same period. Those two sides have not spoken in weeks.

Finance Minister Brenda Bailey said in a video statement over the weekend that the government can't agree to a deal that makes service delivery too expensive to maintain.

The strike has now dragged on for seven weeks, although the unions have been gradually escalating their job action, so many workers have not been off the job for that entire time.

Negotiations for a new contract broke off in July. The job action started on Sept. 2.