Vancouver bus and SeaBus services may be suspended for two days starting January 22nd. The labor union CUPE4500, which is negotiating with Costal Mountain Bus Company (CMBC), a public transportation company in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia, announced on January 18th that if an agreement is not reached in labor-management negotiations, the agreement will be closed at 3 a.m. on the 22nd. He said he will not be performing any duties for 48 hours.
CUPE4500 includes 180 people responsible for supervisors, engineers, maintenance, and communications. If the strike goes ahead, all Metro Vancouver bus and Seabus services will cease. CMBC is a subsidiary of TransLink, which operates and manages Metro Vancouver’s public transportation system, and has approximately 6,000 employees, most of whom are bus drivers.
Union representative Liam O’Neill said, “We have been waiting for a response from CMBC to the new collective agreement proposal for over a month.” He is concerned about the inconvenience to users and plans to step up the strike if the company does not return to negotiations. He says he has no choice but to do so. The union has already banned overtime on January 6th as part of the first stage of the strike, but the company’s services have not been directly affected.
In response, CMBC President and General Manager Michael McDaniel said the union is demanding a 25% wage increase over three years. If the union demands increases, for example, transit supervisors, who currently earn $92,415 a year, would go from $115,477 (a 25% increase), and mechanic supervisors, who currently earn $113,799, would go from $113,799 to $141,606 (a 24.5% increase). He says it’s an unrealistic demand.