87% of ICBC workers vote for job strike

Unionized employees of the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) voted overwhelmingly on Apr. 25 in favour of job action.

The Canadian Office and Professional Employees Union (COPE), Local 378, which represents 4,600 ICBC workers, says its members have gone without a contract for two years.

“The strength of this vote is a clear indication of the level of frustration felt by our members at ICBC,” says COPE 378’s vice president Jeff Gillies. “ICBC has refused to talk about the issues which are a top priority for our members: workload, wages and contracting out. We hope the mandate for job action will prompt ICBC to work with us at the bargaining table to find a fair and reasonable agreement.”

The collective agreement between ICBC and its unionized workers expired in 2010. Bargaining between the Crown corporation and COPE has taken place since January 2011. Earlier this week, ICBC applied to the Labour Relations Board to have portions of its unionized workforce declared an “essential service.”