Metro Vancouver transit workers give a 99 per cent strike mandate in union dispute

Passengers board a bus in downtown Vancouver, Friday, November, 1, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

Workers who drive and maintain Metro Vancouver buses and operate the SeaBus have given their union a 99 per cent strike mandate.

Unifor locals 111 and 2200 say in a news release that the vote in favour of strike action signals members’ readiness to escalate the dispute after months of contract bargaining.

Lana Payne, Unifor’s national president, says the workers keep Metro Vancouver moving every day, and they deserve a contract that reflects their value and skill, and the cost of living in the region.

Bargaining with the employer, Coast Mountain Bus Company, is expected to resume on June 1 for an agreement that covers about 5,000 transit workers.

No strike date has been set.

Coast Mountain Bus picks up hundreds of thousands of passengers every day and operates more than 96 per cent of the region’s bus service.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 27, 2026.