West Vancouver bus drivers cancel plans to escalate job action
Union says District of West Vancouver has agreed to reach collective agreement through arbitration
West Vancouver bus drivers cancelled job action Wednesday that had threatened to send commuters scrambling for alternative transportation the following day.
The union said it had reached an agreement with the District of West Vancouver to reach a new collective agreement through binding arbitration.
In a statement, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 134 president Cornel Neagu said the union was calling off rotating strikes and bans on both overtime and uniforms starting Thursday.
"Public pressure has helped us get our employer to accept the union's arbitration offer," Neagu said.
Local 134 represents 150 drivers, mechanics and cleaners who work for West Vancouver Transit, also known as Blue Bus.
Both Blue Bus and Coast Mountain are TransLink contractors running conventional and shuttle bus services.
But the union claimed that despite doing the same work, Blue Bus drivers only make about $27 hourly compared to $30 for Coast Mountain drivers.
Prior to agreeing to binding arbitration, the district told CBC it had made fair offers to Local 134 workers, including proposals to close the wage gap.