British ColumbiaOver a thousand more members of the B.C. General Employees’ Union (BCGEU) will join picket lines starting Tuesday at about a dozen sites across the province. Union says it will expand action Tuesday to more cities, including Nelson, Williams Lake, Kamloops and NanaimoCBC · Posted: Sep 08, 2025 12:44 PM EDT | Last Updated: September 8Members of the British Columbia General Employees’ Union (BCGEU) picket outside an ICBC driver licensing office in Surrey on Monday, as union president Paul Finch, left, announces an escalation of job action. (Ben Nelms/CBC)Over a thousand more members of the B.C. General Employees’ Union (BCGEU) will join picket lines starting Tuesday at about a dozen sites across the province. Union president Paul Finch announced the escalation Monday morning, speaking in Surrey. It comes nearly a week after the job action began last Tuesday. “The current offer does not meet the needs of workers in this province,” said Finch. “We’re standing strong and we’re going to be here as long as it takes.” The union represents more than 34,000 public service workers, including firefighters, social workers, correctional officers and sheriffs, administrative professionals and conservation officers.BCGEU says they’re seeking an 8.25 per cent wage increase over two years, plus cost-of-living adjustments, and fair access to remote work.Finch says a thousand more members will join picket lines on Tuesday. (Ben Nelms/CBC)Members have so far held picket lines at government offices in Victoria, Surrey and Prince George, as well as outside the Royal B.C. Museum.Finch said workers will begin picketing in cities across the province starting Tuesday, including Nelson, Williams Lake, Kamloops, Fort St. John and Nanaimo, among others. He said the union is prioritizing not impacting the general public amidst the strike and will target core government services. “We’re committed to getting a fair deal,” he said. B.C. government unveils details of offerThe British Columbia government unveiled details of its last offer to striking public service workers, on Monday.The Ministry of Finance says the government is proposing a 4.5 per cent compensation increase over two years, made up of both general wage increases and cost-of-living allowances.It says the union wants 15.75 per cent, while Finch has previously said they are seeking a four per cent wage increase in the first year and 4.25 per cent in the second year, plus unspecified allowances.The ministry says the BCGEU’s 8.25 per cent wage request “only tells part of the story” and it estimates the full cost of the union’s proposals at more than $200 million in “additional compensation increases.”It puts the ongoing annual cost of the BCGEU’s wage and compensation proposals at $437 million.Premier David Eby has said the government’s goal is to reach a deal that’s fair to both unionized workers and taxpayers, with B.C. facing a record $10-billion deficit.Camosun College political science instructor Daniel Reeve says he expects the strike to last longer than a few weeks. “It seems like they’re building a slow boil … I think they’re trying to build the pressure,” said Reeve on CBC’s On The Island Monday morning. “It’s a lot of rocks in hard places.”Negotiations for a new contract broke off in July.With files from CBC’s Johna Baylon, On The Island and The Canadian Press
Over a thousand more B.C. public servants to join picket lines, BCGEU says
