Unionized HandyDART workers to walk off job next week after issuing strike notice

The union that represents HandyDART workers has issued a strike notice, their employer says, with workers in Metro Vancouver set to walk off the job beginning Tuesday, Sept. 3.

In a statement to 1130 NewsRadio, employer Transdev says it’s “disappointed” in the union’s intention to strike.

“On August 26 and 27, HandyDart employees voted on, and subsequently rejected, Transdev’s last offer to settle 9 months of collective bargaining. This offer was not endorsed by the union during the voting process,” the statement said.

“This final offer vote rejected by employees represented a 19.2% increase by January 2026, a $1,500 retention bonus in 2025 and a significant compromise on term length from Transdev,” it continued.

Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1724 shared on Tuesday that the new offer did not address the issues that are key to the “worker’s well-being and their integrity.”

Local 1724 President/Business Agent Joe McCann told 1130 NewsRadio that the union would “like to get parity with the Fraser Valley in wages for our drivers in Vancouver. It is not cheap to live in Vancouver, and it’s hard for our drivers.”

ATU Local 1724 has been in negotiations with Transdev since November 2023. In June 2024, 95 per cent of HandyDART workers voted to authorize strike action. Then on July 3, HandyDART workers initiated partial work withdrawals to ramp up job action.

Transdev and Local 1724 have assured that disruptions will not affect essential services, including those seeking dialysis, cancer, and MS treatments.

“Our priority remains to reach a fair contract that balances the needs of our employees, HandyDART clients, and taxpayers,” said Emily Watson, senior vice president of Western Canada at Transdev. “We apologize to the community for the public impact of this collective bargaining dispute.”

Statistics from 2023 show HandyDART has more than 30,000 registered clients who took more than 1.1 million trips last year.