National

Strike threat looms in HandyDART dispute as union vote suspends job action

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 26 Aug, 2024 11:01 AM

Potential disruption to British Columbia's HandyDART transit service this morning was averted after workers suspended job action to vote on a final contract offer, but strike action remains a possibility.

Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724 says it will give a 72-hour strike notice if the membership votes down the latest offer by Transdev Canada.

Local 1724 president Joe McCann called the suspension of all job action "a gesture of goodwill" after what the union described as "months of bargaining and escalating job actions" ranging from uniform refusals to an overtime ban.

McCann says the vote will happen soon after information meetings for members held Sunday and today.

The union said last week that members would begin a "full work stoppage" today unless a tentative deal was reached with France-based Transdev, the contracted operator of HandyDART.

The two sides have been negotiating since last November, and Transdev Canada says in a statement that the company had been working to rebook trips of the door-to-door HandyDART service that were jeopardized by the possible strike.

Prev Next

MORE National ARTICLES

Three B.C. school districts to launch fully integrated, daylong child care, says Eby

Three school districts in British Columbia will start one-stop child-care programs at local elementary schools this fall. Premier David Eby says offering parents before-and-after-school child care at the same location will save families time and money, create less stress for parents and is an efficient use of school space and resources.

Three B.C. school districts to launch fully integrated, daylong child care, says Eby

Poilievre targets illicit drugs in B.C. hospitals

Federal Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre says the Conservatives will put forward legislation that would forbid Ottawa from "ever" granting provinces exemptions to allow illicit drug use in hospitals. Poilievre made the announcement in Vancouver on Tuesday, saying the Conservatives will introduce a private member's bill in Parliament to end the federal health minister's power to grant exemptions that would allow the use of illicit drugs in a hospital setting.

Poilievre targets illicit drugs in B.C. hospitals

OPINION: Time For A Diverse Lieutenant-Governor For BC As The Term Comes To An End For Janet Austin

In this Op-Ed Senior Reporter with DESIBUZZCanada, PD Raj explores the dialogue of representation and inclusivity within the political arena as current Lieutenant-Governor Janet Austin's term comes to an end.

OPINION: Time For A Diverse Lieutenant-Governor For BC As The Term Comes To An End For Janet Austin

Wildfire growth prompts another evacuation order in northeastern B.C.

A wildfire just outside the community of Fort Nelson has grown as residents in British Columbia's northeast receive more evacuation orders. An updated estimate from the BC Wildfire Service says the blaze spans 84 square kilometres, a significant increase since Monday, when it was mapped at about 53 square kilometres in size.

Wildfire growth prompts another evacuation order in northeastern B.C.

Canadian short story legend, Nobel Prize winner Alice Munro has died

Short story legend Alice Munro, whose intricate tales depicting small-town southwestern Ontario earned her an international fanbase and the Nobel Prize in literature, has died at age 92. Penguin Random House Canada said Tuesday that Munro died Monday in her home in Port Hope, Ont.

Canadian short story legend, Nobel Prize winner Alice Munro has died

B.C. moves to cap rent hikes for those in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside

The B.C. government has introduced legislation that would allow the City of Vancouver to limit rent increases for new tenants in its poorest neighbourhood, the Downtown Eastside. The rent cap is for those living in single-room occupancy buildings where the government says rents have increased from $800 a month to as high as $1,950 a month.