Metro Vancouver outside workers escalate job action, full strike looming
Union members have walked off jobs at 25 regional parks and are expanding action to wastewater plants and head office, with a full indefinite strike possible after weekend mediation talks.
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Metro Vancouver's outside workers are significantly escalating their job action Friday, expanding a walkout that began last week at 25 regional parks to now include head office, the housing corporation, wastewater treatment plants, and operations.
The Greater Vancouver Regional District Employee Union (GVRDEU) says members have been without a contract for 18 months and this weekend's three-day mediation with the Labour Relations Board is the last chance to avoid a full-scale, indefinite strike.
"This is the end of the line. Our members are frustrated, angry, and tired of having Metro Vancouver management ignore their serious concerns about health and safety, contracting out, and retention and recruitment of skilled workers," said union president Jessie Medeiros.
If the strike goes ahead, nearly all workers will be involved, though the union will maintain services the Labour Relations Board has designated as essential — about 15 workers across all 25 parks, compared to the usual 100 on shift daily. Metro Vancouver says it has contingency plans to maintain essential services.
The union is pushing mayors and councillors on the Metro Vancouver board to intervene, noting that management has offered wage increases of more than 10 per cent over three years. Medeiros pointed to recent spending overruns, including the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant that ballooned from a $700 million budget to $3.8 billion, saying management salaries have increased 69 per cent between 2019 and 2024 while workers struggle with recruitment and retention.
