Metro Vancouver HandyDART workers plan full strike on Aug. 26 if no deal is reached

A HandyDART bus seen in Metro Vancouver.

Unionized transit workers who operate HandyDART service in Metro Vancouver are preparing for a full work stoppage on Aug. 26 if they cannot reach a tentative agreement with their employer in the coming days.

The more than 600 members of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724 voted to authorize a strike back in June, and have been engaging in partial work withdrawals since July 3.

The union says it has been in contract negotiations with Transdev, the French company contracted by TransLink to provide HandyDART service in Metro Vancouver, since November 2023.

“We're not confident we can get this done,” said Joe McCann, the union’s president. “Transdev has a history of dragging these things out. We'd really like TransLink to get involved.”

Caught in the middle of the dispute are the customers who rely on the service.

Trips that are not considered essential are being canceled, such as rides to grocery stores, community centres and everyday appointments.

“Well, it’s my lifeline,” said Rena Mazor from her home in Pitt Meadows.

“I don't drive anymore. I have MS, I'm 82, and it's pretty hard,” she said.

The union blames Transdev for staffing shortages and high turnover among HandyDART drivers, claiming that the staff turnover rate for HandyDART is more than double that of other TransLink workers, and blaming lower compensation for that difference.

It says its members make 16 per cent less than HandyDART drivers in the Fraser Valley – who were part of a 124-day transit strike of their own last year – and 30 per cent less than drivers employed by Coast Mountain Bus Company, which operates most TransLink buses. 

For its part, the employer issued a brief statement Friday acknowledging the union's full-work-stoppage threat and claiming it has offered "significant" wage increases between 23 and 32 per cent, depending on classification, which would be fully implemented by Jan. 1, 2027.

"After 25 days of collaborative collective bargaining over nine months and a failed attempt at mediation the union walked away from, we are disappointed that our customers will potentially be in a position of reduced service and our employees’ livelihoods will be compromised," Transdev said.

"Our priority remains reaching a fair contract and, as always, we remain open to resolving this matter in good faith."

HandyDART is a service that provides door-to-door rides for "people who are unable to navigate conventional public transit without assistance," according to TransLink. It helps people with disabilities and mobility issues get to and from appointments and activities. 

Last year's Fraser Valley bus strike was particularly hard on HandyDART users, who can be homebound without the service. 

McCann said the ATU is "calling on TransLink to step in and direct their contractor to bargain a fair deal," but the regional transit provider referred all questions to Transdev, saying "TransLink is not at the negotiating table."

The union has set a deadline of 6 p.m. on Aug. 25 to reach a tentative deal. If no deal is reached by that time, the work stoppage would begin the following day.