To get in to see the province's premier display of historical artifacts and memorabilia at the Royal B.C. Museum in downtown Victoria on Wednesday, tourists had to be willing to cross a picket line.
Striking government workers had set up on the front steps of the museum and were stopping potential visitors to ask them not to cross.
The museum remained open, except for the IMAX theatre, but inside the building, only a handful of people milled about. Tickets were only available through an electronic kiosk, and the only staff available were at an information booth set up at the entrance.
Staff refused to comment on the number of visitors, and the museum did not respond to a request for comment via phone and email.
The B.C. General Employees' Union (BCGEU) and the Professional Employees' Association (PEA) began the job action on Tuesday, Sept. 2. An agreement between the government and unions allows only select workers to go on strike, ensuring essential government services can continue.
This still allowed for than 2,500 workers to strike as of Wednesday, with nine separate picket lines set up in three cities.
The BCGEU represents roughly 34,000 government workers, ranging from B.C Liquor store employees to wildland firefighters, while the PEA represents approximately 1,800 government employees, working in roles such as geoscientists, foresters, engineers and psychologists.
The last time the public service workers voted to strike was in 2022. At that time, to maintain essential service levels, the only workers able to walk off the job were from the Liquor Distribution Branch. A new deal means a much broader group of ministries can be targeted.
On Wednesday, this included staff from the Royal B.C. Museum — which BCGEU president Paul Finch called "an incredibly toxic workplace" — as well as select ministries such as Citizens' Service and Finance. Finch said striking workers come from a variety of occupations and include administrative and information technology professionals.
Stalled talks have not resumed
Finch said the union and the government are not currently engaged in talks to resolve the dispute.
"There have been no negotiations," he said. "There was a brief discussion with the employer following the strike vote announcement; the employer indicated that they were not coming back to the table with an enhanced wage offer."
The BCGEU and PEA are asking for a four-per-cent raise this year, followed by another 4.25-per-cent next year. The government's initial offer was for 3.5 per cent over two years. A B.C. government spokesperson did not answer whether the government has put forward a counteroffer.
Finch would not reveal any specific details about the union's plan going forward, other than to say "we're going to strike as long as it takes, and escalate as required to get that deal."
The B.C. government provided a statement from Finance Minister Brenda Bailey, but noted that it is the government's policy to leave discussions on specifics to the bargaining table. She said the government has demonstrated its "willingness" to come to terms on a deal that provides fair wages and blamed the trade war with the U.S. for "strong economic headwinds."
"The impacts of the US trade war are being felt across Canada, and we must make decisions based on what’s best for all British Columbians," she said.
The B.C. government has struggled to rein in a growing budget deficit, which hit $7.34 billion last year out of a total budget of $91.4 billion. While this was roughly $2 billion better than forecast, the government has warned that U.S. tariffs could have a further negative impact as it tries to claw its way back closer to a balanced budget.
The bigger picture of public sector labour negotiations
Other public sector unions, such as those representing health-care workers and teachers, are simultaneously negotiating for new collective bargaining agreements this year and have received similar wage offers from the government. In total, more than 450,000 public sector workers are renegotiating agreements.
Often, unions will piggyback on each other's deals through the use of "me too" clauses, forcing the government to offer similar wage increases.
So far, the government has reached a framework deal with a bargaining unit representing facilities workers such as care aides and custodians. That agreement was struck by the Hospital Employees' Union on behalf of the 67,500 workers in the Facilities Bargaining Association, 95 per cent of whom are in the hospital union and four per cent of whom are in the BCGEU.
That deal has yet to be ratified by members, and the specifics of the wage package have not been revealed. The rest of the agreement beyond wages has yet to be hashed out.
Finch criticized the deal, saying the wage offer is below inflation and accepting it undermines the broader effort to get a good deal for public sector workers.
"Why they chose to release a concept of a plan, part of an agreement, is beyond me," Finch said. "I don't think it serves any strategic value."
The Hospital Employees' Union defended the move as a way to keep its members informed of this "momentous development" on the path to a collective agreement. The union touted that this framework deal offers more money to facilities workers to finally make up for deep cuts made by the B.C. Liberal government in 20024.
"The historic Framework the province and the Facilities Bargaining Association (FBA) reached last week is a recognition from government that they want to correct the devastating cuts made to health care by the BC Liberals in the early 2000s," said an emailed statement from Lynn Bueckert, the union's secretary-business manager. "Those deep cuts have and continue to negatively impact the lives of tens of thousands of mostly women and racialized health care workers in the FBA."
