ATU Local 1724 represents over 500 drivers, office and maintenance workers providing HandyDART service in the Metro Vancouver area. On January 1st of this year, TransLink gave a contract for the whole region to MVT, an American, for-profit company.
Our workers have a deep bond with our clients, but cannot afford to accept a contract that would gut the meager gains we have negotiated over close to three decades. It took us almost two decades to get a pension plan that would allow us to retire with dignity; MVT is attempting to eliminate that. Our workers stand to have our current health benefits eroded in order to increase MVT profit margin.
Workers are under threat that their jobs will be exported by contacting out. We were forced to take this action to protect our livelihood and the future quality of the HandyDART service. ATU local 1724 workers have been forced to strike for the first time in almost three decades!
Through TransLink’s contracting system, HandyDART workers have are the lowest paid in the transit system.
MVT rakes in profit on the backs of its workers.
TransLink is saving money at the expense of the senior, disabled and special needs community while workers go hungry.
Binding Arbitration
All HandyDart workers deeply regret the hardship that our passengers are going through. In a bid to come to resolution ATU local 1724 has asked MVT to agree to binding arbitration, MVT has denied this opportunity in the hopes of breaking its workers. Binding arbitration would allow passengers to resume service and workers to get back to work.
We urge the public to:
Contact your: TransLink board of directors, Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA), TransLink, Mayor, and Council:
E-mail board@translink.ca phone 604-453-4500 Martin Lay director of access transit : martin.lay@translink.ca
On Strike For Our Future