Union boss credits workers’ ‘courage and tenacity’ on pickets for deal to end strike

Government-run liquor stores have reopened after an eight-week long strike, but restocking for restaurants and bars could take months.

BC General Employees’ Union head Paul Finch says now that picket lines are down across the province after an eight-week public service strike, the focus is on getting people back to work and preparing for a membership vote on the tentative deal with the province.

“This is the most significant widespread strike we’ve had in the province in over 40 years,” Finch said Monday, a day after the union announced the deal that emerged from eight days of mediated talks with the government.

“I don’t have downtime.”

He said there are “incredible logistics” involved in facilitating union members getting back to work and informing them of what the deal entails before a ratification vote sometime next week. “That’s where we’re really focused in the coming couple weeks,” Finch said.

The union says it will recommend to its 34,000 members to accept the deal, which includes general wage increases of three per cent each year for four years. The union previously said it wanted four per cent per year for two years, while the government’s offer was two per cent per year for two years.

“I think this is a significant achievement for the union and one that would not be possible without the courage and tenacity and perseverance of our members on picket lines for the last eight weeks,” Finch said.

Finch pointed to wage increases targeted at the lowest-paid members.

“That’s exactly one of the things we were fighting for,” he said. “We wanted to lift up people who were most impacted by the affordability crisis.”

British Columbia Premier David Eby said Monday that he was grateful that a tentative deal had been reached.

He told an unrelated news conference that the strike had been “challenging,” especially for the province’s hospitality industry and expressed gratitude to those who hashed out the deal at the negotiating table. The talks were facilitated by veteran mediator Vince Reddy, and colleague Amanda Rogers.

Eby said he looked forward to seeing the results of a ratification vote by the members of the BCGEU.

The head of a British Columbia hospitality industry lobby group said Monday that news of the tentative deal was like “Christmas in October.”

Ian Tostenson with the BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association said restaurant and bar owners had watched their stocks of liquor, beer and wine dwindle while government workers walked picket lines and government alcohol distribution ground to a halt.

“It’s been a very stressful couple of months for our industry,” Tostenson said in an interview Monday. “We had great support from the local wineries and distilleries and breweries that really helped. Now we can round out our offerings, so we’re really, really pleased and we’re happy for the BCGEU to get back to work too.”

Tostenson said some businesses were able to stock up before the union escalated strike action to include liquor stores and warehouses, but some small and medium-sized restaurants weren’t able to do so, due to cash and space constraints.

He said manufacturers had struggled to keep up with the increased demand, but relationships with the food and beverage industry were “strengthened” as a result.

The Professional Employees Association, which represents about 1,600 licensed professionals such as engineers, foresters, lawyers, and others said it was suspending picketing activity on Sunday, in its parallel dispute with the government.

The association said it was suspending picket lines to resume bargaining with province, and said its members had been offered the same wage increase as members of the BC General Employees’ Union.

RELATED STORY: B.C. public service workers reach tentative deal with government

This report by Darryl Greer, The Canadian Press, was first published Oct. 27, 2025.