BURST
The B.C. General Employees’ Union turned up the pressure on Wednesday, expanding its job action across the province as it attempts to get the government to meet its wage demands.
The union said all B.C. government liquor and cannabis stores are now behind picket lines, bringing the total number of workers on strike to nearly 25,000.
Here’s a look at the strike that is gripping B.C.:
• 0: Remaining branches open of any B.C. Liquor or B.C. Cannabis stores, the Ministry of Citizens’ Services — which includes all Service B.C. workers — and the Ministry of Labour in Victoria.
• 34,000: Total number of union members who work in the public sector group.
• 25,000: Approximate number of workers who are on strike as of Oct. 8.
• 431: Total work sites that are closed.
• 36: Days since the BCGEU began job action on Sept. 2. Negotiations with the provincial government began on Jan. 22 and lasted until July 18, when they broke down. A strike vote returned a 92.7 per cent vote in favour, and the BCGEU issued a 72-hour strike notice on Aug. 29. After three separate escalations in job action, talks resumed on Sept. 29 but broke down almost immediately.
• 0: Number of B.C. public service strikes in history that laster longer that this current job action.
• 3.5%: The wage increase the union said the government has offered for each of the next two years. The union’s proposal is for a four per cent increase in the first year, and 4.25 per cent in the second.
“We don’t take this escalation lightly, and we know that disruptions to services are difficult for the public — we regret the impact this is having on communities,” Paul Finch, the BCGEU president, said in a news release.
“But after months of patience, our members have been left with no alternative. The government has a choice: they can sit down and bargain with us — or they can continue to let this disruption escalate,” added Finch. “We’re ready to talk. We’ve been ready. The ball is in their court.”