HandyDART workers vote to authorize strike

The union representing HandyDART workers across Metro Vancouver says it has voted to authorize strike action “if necessary.”

The ATU Local 1724, which represents employees of the service that operates accessible public transit around the region, says its members have voted “overwhelmingly” in favour of escalating job action starting July 3.

“After eight months of fruitless bargaining with for-profit contractor Transdev, and six months of working under an expired contract, 95 per cent of frustrated Metro Vancouver HandyDART workers voted this week to authorize strike action, if necessary,” the union said.

“Our more than 600 bus operators, trainers, supervisors, office workers, and maintenance workers are fed-up with Transdev,” union president Mark Beeching said, referring to the French corporation that has been contracted by TransLink to operate HandyDART service since 2018.

“Contracting out HandyDART service has led to years of poor working conditions, unfair compensation, and spiraling service that has been unable to meet demand. This strike vote sends a loud and clear message to Transdev and TransLink that it’s time to save our broken HandyDART system.”

The union says job action would start with a uniform refusal July 3 and escalate to a fare strike shortly after.

According to the union, six different mayors on TransLink’s Regional Council for Transportation have recently signed an open letter calling for the service to be brought in-house.

The ATU says it has been pushing for protections against the increasing use of taxis to fill HandyDART service, and has been pushing for wages to be more in line with Coast Mountain Transit workers as well as conventional bus operators.

In addition, it says that HandyDART workers in the Fraser Valley — also employed by Transdev — make $5 more per hour than their Metro Vancouver counterparts.

If the strike goes forward it would be the third major transit strike by Transdev workers in BC over the past two years. In 2022, BC Transit workers in Kelowna walked off the job for a day, and in 2023, BC Transit workers in the Fraser Vally went on strike for 124 days.

CityNews has reached out to both Transdev and TransLink for comment.

With files from Angelyna Mintz.