Twenty SeaBus sailings were cancelled on Saturday as the union representing 5,000 Metro Vancouver transit operators and maintenance workers continued job action for a second day.
The cancellations were linked to a ban on overtime for maintenance workers that began Friday morning, along with a uniform ban for bus and SeaBus operators.
The actions represent the first round of pressure against employer Coast Mountain Bus Company (CMBC), which the union says is refusing to meet its demands for a new contract, including increased wages and better working conditions.
The two sides reached an impasse Thursday, prompting the union to follow through with its 72-hour strike notice that was issued Monday.
Here’s what you need to know about how your commute might be affected and what happens next.
What’s cancelled?
The SeaBus cancellations won’t impact service until 4:15 p.m., when sailings will be reduced to 30-minute intervals until the end of service Saturday.
That schedule will also be in place Sunday, TransLink later said.
Sailings will continue to run every 15 minutes as normal until those hours, TransLink said.
CMBC president Michael McDaniel said on Friday that every SeaBus trip must have an engineer aboard, and the company does not have enough engineers to operate all three SeaBuses without workers on overtime.
As of Saturday morning, no bus routes were impacted by the job action, which TransLink has said could eventually lead to buses being pulled off the road.
CMBC says they have roughly 1,300 buses in active service and 150 spares on standby. Once those spares are all put on the roads, McDaniel said service disruptions could begin quickly.
TransLink is advising passengers to watch its website and Twitter feed for information on possible disruptions, and to leave extra time for their commutes.
What’s not impacted?
Job action will not affect SkyTrain, Canada Line, West Coast Express or HandyDART service, or contracted shuttle services in Langley and on Bowen Island.
It also won’t have any effect on the West Vancouver Blue Bus system, which is operated by a different company.
The Metro Vancouver Transit Police say they will also increase staff to deal with any crowding at SkyTrain stations.
Where are negotiations now?
Unifor western regional director Gavin McGarrigle said on Saturday no talks are scheduled between the two sides, as the union’s demands are still not being met.
“We have heard no change in the company’s mandate,” he said. “They told us clearly the other day, when we were prepared to go bargaining around the clock, that they could give us a deal as long as we fold up our tent, agree to everything they set and accept their model. And we’re not prepared to do that.”
Workers have been without a contract since the end of March and says its members are increasingly stretched amid surging ridership on the Metro Vancouver transit system.
The union alleges CMBC’s latest offer does not adequately address concerns over those working conditions, including guaranteeing minimum break times.
But McDaniel said the employer has made “fair and reasonable offers” to the union “greater than most other public-sector settlements in B.C.”
On Friday, he said meeting the union’s wage demands would cost the company $680 million across 10 years. The company has counter-offered $71 million across 10 years, calling it “fiscally responsible.”
McDaniel added if that $680-million gap is given to the workers, it would jeopardize planned and future transit expansion projects like increased bus service, the Broadway subway and the Surrey-Langley SkyTrain extension.
McGarrigle said he’s confident the public is on the side of the workers and understand any transit expansion needs to keep worker conditions in mind.
“TransLink is misleading the public, there are billions of dollars on the table,” he said.
“What they’ve done is they’ve planned a system where it’s OK to pack passengers in there like sardines, it’s OK to make sure transit operators don’t get the minimum breaks, and it’s OK for maintenance workers to work overtime.
“That’s why we’re calling for a system reset: we want to make it better for passengers and our members.”
McGarrigle said the next step will likely be an overtime ban for bus operators, which he predicted would immediately eliminate 10 to 15 per cent of service across the region. Any escalation would come with 24 to 48 hours notice, he said.
He added the union will escalate to a full work stoppage if CMBC doesn’t “have a complete system reset in how they’re approaching these negotiations.”
TransLink did not immediately respond to McGarrigle’s comments Saturday.
—With files from Simon Little
© 2019 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
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November 03, 2019 at 02:12AM
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