Workers vote down offer in 5-month-long transit strike in B.C.'s Cowichan Valley

CBC News

· Posted: Jul 08, 2025 9:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 3 hours ago

The politician of North Cowichan, B.C., is reiterating calls for the state to measurement successful and extremity a five-month-long transit onslaught connected Vancouver Island.

The strike, which began connected Feb. 8 and is the longest transit declaration quality successful the province's history, affects astir 50 autobus drivers, attraction workers and cleaners successful the portion northbound of Victoria. 

Cowichan Valley's transit system covers much than 45 kilometres, northbound to south, and the vale itself has astir 90,000 residents.

Over the weekend, workers represented by Unifor locals 114 and 333 voted down a connection enactment guardant by a government-appointed mediator successful a bid to resoluteness the 150-day-long quality betwixt them and backstage employer, Transdev.

WATCH | Cowichan Valley commuters frustrated by strike: 

Rob Douglas, the politician of North Cowichan, is calling connected the state to instrumentality a much progressive attack to extremity the strike, which helium says is affecting the region's astir susceptible residents.

"In my view, it makes consciousness astatine this constituent to person the state play a bigger relation successful these negotiations and person them astatine the array to assistance america benignant retired immoderate benignant of resolution," helium told Jason D'Souza, big of CBC's All Points West, connected Monday.

Douglas said that residents successful the portion whitethorn person expected a onslaught to past respective weeks, but nary of them anticipated it would past 5 months and counting.

"As we dispersed retired truthful overmuch of our improvement implicit the years, it has been the sprawl exemplary of development, which, you know, does make challenges successful presumption of our transit system," helium said.

Gerald Watson, 77, is simply a Lake Cowichan nonmigratory who has to either walk hours walking oregon walk much than $80 connected a taxi to get to Duncan. He estimates that he'd person to walk much than $285 to get to Victoria.

He said helium supports the drivers' union, but wants the authorities to measurement successful and resoluteness the strike.

He added that the authorities has done small to enactment transit services successful agrarian areas since the closure of Greyhound autobus services successful 2021. 

"This is simply a implicit abdication, arsenic acold arsenic I'm concerned, of authorities work towards the public, and that's the mode it is," helium said.

A connection from Labour Minister Jennifer Whiteside said it was regrettable that some parties successful the labour quality had not agreed connected a deal.

"The best, astir lasting agreements are negotiated astatine the bargaining table," she said.

"We are reviewing the concern to find however the Ministry whitethorn champion enactment this work, truthful that transit services tin beryllium restored arsenic soon arsenic possible."

Union votes down offer

Striking Unifor members are demanding higher wages, scheduled washroom breaks, and entree to backstage washrooms. The declaration betwixt the national and the leader expired past March.

CBC News asked Unifor whether determination were peculiar reasons the recommendations were rejected implicit the weekend, but the national did not straight respond.

"Unifor is dedicated in continuing to enactment with our members, the institution and authorities connected uncovering a solution to resoluteness the dispute," it said successful an emailed statement.

WATCH | Transit employees locomotion disconnected the occupation successful the Cowichan Valley: 

Transdev, which is contracted by the provincial Crown corporation, B.C. Transit, to supply services successful the region, said successful a connection that it was disappointed by the union's determination to cull the mediated proposal.

"Transdev supported the mediators' recommended settlement, believing it was some generous and sustainable, recognizing the captious publication of our teams portion ensuring semipermanent work viability," work a connection from Emily Watson, the elder vice-president of Transdev successful Western Canada.

The institution said that the mediator's connection included wage increases for some autobus and handyDART drivers, arsenic good arsenic "improvements to disposable washroom facilities passim the system."