Thousands of people filled downtown Victoria on Monday as members and supporters of the BC General Employees’ Union (BCGEU) gathered at the BC Legislature to back striking public service workers.
According to the BCGEU, over 10,000 union members and supporters participated in the march, which happened at the same time as BC’s fall legislative session opening.
The rally was the sixth week of job action that included nearly 19,700 BCGEU members throughout the province.
Leaders from several major unions and organizations, including the Professional Employees Association, United Food and Commercial Workers, the National Union of Public and General Employees, and the BC Federation of Labour, joined BCGEU president Paul Finch at the event.
Finch said the demonstration is aimed at sending a message to government negotiators to return to the table with a better wage offer.
“Today’s rally shows the power of working people standing together,” Finch said in a release.
“Public service workers deserve respect, fairness, and wages that reflect their value.”
The BCGEU reported that members walked off the job at 106 more worksites on Monday, bringing the total to 308 affected sites and nearly 22,000 workers involved in job action across BC.
Negotiations between the union and the provincial government stalled again on September 29th. The BCGEU proposed a 4% annual wage increase for two years. The government’s latest offer includes a 2% annual increase.
The Community Bargaining Association (CBA), which represents about 23,000 workers in community-based services like treatment centers, seniors’ care, and home support, also announced last week that talks with the government had hit a deadlock.
Traffic was slow in several areas of downtown Victoria on Monday as marchers walked along Government Street and Belleville Street toward the Legislature grounds.
The provincial government has not released a statement in response to the latest round of demonstrations.
