BCGEU says some of its members will begin walking picket lines Tuesday

By Canadian Press on September 1, 2025.

VICTORIA — The British Columbia General Employees’ Union says a portion of its members who work for the province’s public service will begin walking picket lines Tuesday after the union issued 72-hour notice of a strike last week.

The union says in a news release that its president, Paul Finch, will join striking workers on a picket line in Victoria.

The release does not specify which members would be striking, but says there will also be picket lines in Prince George and Surrey.

The BCGEU has about 34,000 members in fields including social services, health care, education, government liquor stores, prisons, courts and public administration.

The union has said a strike vote was called after a breakdown in negotiations between the union and the agency in July, and Finch told a news conference Friday that 92.7 per cent of members voted in support of job action “if necessary.”

He said the union is seeking a four-per-cent general wage increase in the first year and 4.25 per cent in the second year, as well as an unspecified cost-of-living adjustment.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 1, 2025.

The Canadian Press

11
-10