BC Transit

CUPE BC president Karen Ranalletta speaks at a public rally at Five Corners in downtown Chilliwack in April. B.C. United has called upon the government to make decisive action to end the strike. (Black Press File Photo/Jenna Hauck)

‘Enough is enough’: B.C. United demands end to Fraser Valley transit strike

MLAs slam NDP government for lack of decisive action

 

Transit drivers with CUPE Local 561 on strike on the picket line on Yale Road West in Chilliwack on April 5, 2023. (Paul Henderson/ Chilliwack Progress)

Striking Fraser Valley transit union accuses First Transit of bargaining in bad faith

CUPE files complaint with Labour Relations Board also accusing employer of unfair labour practices

 

More than 100 people came out for a public rally at Five Corners in downtown Chilliwack on Wednesday, April 12, 2023 in support of CUPE 561 (First Transit), whose members had been on the picket lines for more than three weeks since the full withdrawal of transit services in the Fraser Valley. (Jenna Hauck/Black Press Media)

OPINION: First Transit strike in Eastern Fraser Valley is BC Transit’s failure

CUPE BC president Karen Ranalleta says BC Transit ‘needs to get its head out of the sand’

  • May 15, 2023

 

Hanna Drobot (left) from Urkaine and Suzan Deng from Sudan are among local immigrants being impacted by the ongoing transit strike in the Fraser Valley. (Submitted photos)

Fraser Valley transit strike impacts newcomers to Canada

Many new residents don’t have vehicles, and rely on buses to get to school and work

Hanna Drobot (left) from Urkaine and Suzan Deng from Sudan are among local immigrants being impacted by the ongoing transit strike in the Fraser Valley. (Submitted photos)
Fraser Valley-based First Transit transit workers voted 98 per cent in favour of job action following a strike vote on Dec. 19, 2022. They’ve now been on strike for over a month. (File photo)

Transit employer says mediation an option to end month-long strike in Fraser Valley

Labour minister said earlier this week that neither party had indicated the need for mediation

Fraser Valley-based First Transit transit workers voted 98 per cent in favour of job action following a strike vote on Dec. 19, 2022. They’ve now been on strike for over a month. (File photo)
More than 100 people came out for a public rally at Five Corners in downtown Chilliwack on Wednesday, April 12, 2023 in support of CUPE 561, whose members have now been on the picket lines for a month. (Jenna Hauck/Black Press Media)

Labour minister says neither party in Fraser Valley transit dispute ready for mediation

Bus system has been idle since March 20 after negotiations broke down between CUPE and First Transit

More than 100 people came out for a public rally at Five Corners in downtown Chilliwack on Wednesday, April 12, 2023 in support of CUPE 561, whose members have now been on the picket lines for a month. (Jenna Hauck/Black Press Media)
More than 100 people came out for a public rally at Five Corners in downtown Chilliwack on Wednesday, April 12, 2023 in support of CUPE 561, whose members have been on the picket lines for more than three weeks since the full withdrawal of transit services in the Fraser Valley. (Jenna Hauck/ Chilliwack Progress)

UPDATE: Lunchtime rally in Chilliwack saw striking transit drivers ‘demand to be treated fairly’

‘We’re here now on strike because this job is no longer sustainable,’ says Chilliwack driver at rally

  • Apr 12, 2023
More than 100 people came out for a public rally at Five Corners in downtown Chilliwack on Wednesday, April 12, 2023 in support of CUPE 561, whose members have been on the picket lines for more than three weeks since the full withdrawal of transit services in the Fraser Valley. (Jenna Hauck/ Chilliwack Progress)
Police and paramedics load a man into an ambulance in Surrey Tuesday (April 11) after he was stabbed on a Coast Mountain bus in the 9900-block of King George Boulevard at about 9:30 p.m. (Photo: Shane MacKichan)

Second stabbing in as many weeks on Surrey transit bus

Man critically injured during attack on a bus not far from King George skytrain station

Police and paramedics load a man into an ambulance in Surrey Tuesday (April 11) after he was stabbed on a Coast Mountain bus in the 9900-block of King George Boulevard at about 9:30 p.m. (Photo: Shane MacKichan)
Transit drivers with CUPE Local 561 on strike on the picket line on Yale Road West in Chilliwack on April 5, 2023. (Paul Henderson/ Chilliwack Progress)

Striking Fraser Valley bus drivers plan rally at Five Corners in Chilliwack

Union denies First Transit civil suit claim that workers committed ‘unlawful acts’ on picket lines

Transit drivers with CUPE Local 561 on strike on the picket line on Yale Road West in Chilliwack on April 5, 2023. (Paul Henderson/ Chilliwack Progress)
Transit drivers with CUPE Local 561 on strike on the picket line on Yale Road West in Chilliwack on April 5, 2023. (Paul Henderson/ Chilliwack Progress)

First Transit seeks court injunction against workers picketing in Abbotsford and Chilliwack

Company says members of CUPE local 561 are committing ‘unlawful acts’

Transit drivers with CUPE Local 561 on strike on the picket line on Yale Road West in Chilliwack on April 5, 2023. (Paul Henderson/ Chilliwack Progress)
Sarah Pringle of Chilliwack is eager to see the transit strike end so she can get Handydart services again. (Jennifer Feinberg/ Chilliwack Progress)

‘How can they cripple the city this way?’ Chilliwack senior asks about Fraser Valley transit strike

‘If customers who feel they’re eligible, are not receiving service, they should contact First Transit’

Sarah Pringle of Chilliwack is eager to see the transit strike end so she can get Handydart services again. (Jennifer Feinberg/ Chilliwack Progress)
CUPE 561 transit workers stand at the picket line in the ongoing transit strike, as they wait for a deal to be hammered out between the union and their employer, First Transit. (@fraservalleytransitstrike/Instagram)

Transit users in Fraser Valley losing money, shifts, jobs as ongoing strike keeps buses parked

CUPE 561 members share public concerns about daily impacts of Fraser Valley transit strike

CUPE 561 transit workers stand at the picket line in the ongoing transit strike, as they wait for a deal to be hammered out between the union and their employer, First Transit. (@fraservalleytransitstrike/Instagram)
An international student was taken to hospital after being assaulted at a Kelowna bus stop on March. 17. (World Sikh Organization of Canada)

‘Investigate attack on international student as a hate crime’: Kelowna Sikh community

An international student was taken to hospital after being assaulted at a Kelowna bus stop

An international student was taken to hospital after being assaulted at a Kelowna bus stop on March. 17. (World Sikh Organization of Canada)
Talks have broken down between the union and the employer in the eastern Fraser Valley transit system, with a strike called for Monday, March 20. (File photo)

UPDATE: Eastern Fraser Valley buses roll to a stop Monday; First Transit releases five-year contract offer

Transit in Abbotsford, Chilliwack, Mission, Agassiz, Harrison, Hope on hold until agreement reached

Talks have broken down between the union and the employer in the eastern Fraser Valley transit system, with a strike called for Monday, March 20. (File photo)
First Transit employees are on their third day of striking today, March 11. (@fraservalleytransitstrike/Instagram)

BC Liberals push Premier Eby to bring Fraser Valley transit strike to a halt

Three-day transit strike could be followed by indefinite strike if wage deal not met soon

First Transit employees are on their third day of striking today, March 11. (@fraservalleytransitstrike/Instagram)
CUPE workers on strike on Gladys Road in Abbotsford on Thursday, March 9. They are holding a three-day strike as negotiations seemingly have broken down between the union and their employer, First Transit. (@fraservalleytransitstrike/Instagram)

Low wages, lack of pension keep buses off roads in Fraser Valley for second day

Services could be suspended indefinitely on March 20 if wage deal not reached soon, says BC Transit

CUPE workers on strike on Gladys Road in Abbotsford on Thursday, March 9. They are holding a three-day strike as negotiations seemingly have broken down between the union and their employer, First Transit. (@fraservalleytransitstrike/Instagram)
Ethan, 12, suffered damage to his leg after falling under a Kelowna transit bus on Feb. 28, 2023. (GoFundMe)

Fundraiser tops $10,000 for Okanagan boy injured after falling under bus

The GoFundMe says donations will help with cost of physiotherapy

Ethan, 12, suffered damage to his leg after falling under a Kelowna transit bus on Feb. 28, 2023. (GoFundMe)
The Fraser Valley Express is among routes that will be impacted by an impending three-day strike by First Transit workers in the eastern Fraser Valley this weekend. (BC Transit)

Three-day bus strike starts this Thursday in Abbotsford, Chilliwack, Mission and Hope

Further service disruption facing customers in Fraser Valley transit systems due to job action

The Fraser Valley Express is among routes that will be impacted by an impending three-day strike by First Transit workers in the eastern Fraser Valley this weekend. (BC Transit)
Fraser Valley-based First Transit bus drivers have voted 98 per cent in favour of job action following a strike vote on Dec. 19. Job action has been escalating as talks continue. (File photo)

Fraser Valley transit strike action could escalate to full walk-out, says CUPE

Drivers in Abbotsford, Chilliwack and surrounding area ‘most underpaid transit workers in the region’

Fraser Valley-based First Transit bus drivers have voted 98 per cent in favour of job action following a strike vote on Dec. 19. Job action has been escalating as talks continue. (File photo)
(Black Press file photo)

Child hit by Kelowna BC Transit bus after school

The child is 12 years old

(Black Press file photo)