As British Columbia residents prepared to embark on their Easter long weekend, BC Ferries announced a retroactive one-year wage increase was coming for unionized employees.
On Thursday evening, BC Ferries disclosed plans to implement a substantial one-year wage increase of 7.75% for its unionized workforce.
The “substantial raise”, described by the employer, was determined by an arbitration panel following the stalemate in wage negotiations with the BC Ferry and Marine Workers’ Union last fall.
This move, described as a one-time adjustment, also includes supplementary “special increases,” with certain licensed mariners slated to receive an additional boost of up to 10%.
These adjustments are retroactive, taking effect from October 1st, 2023.
In a statement, BC Ferries president Nicolas Jimenez described the wage hike as “one of the largest increases in the company’s history.”
“We know wages haven’t kept up for our people and that more was needed for us to get back to being an employer of choice. I’m grateful to our people for the patience they demonstrated over the last few months,” said Jimenez.
“Getting to this point has been a long time coming. The offer we put on the table six months ago was a very good one then, and it’s still a very good one today – even more so when you consider it’s a one-year increase. In fact, it’s one of the largest increases in the company’s history and certainly one of the biggest in Canada in recent years for a company our size.”
In a news release, BC Ferries stated that it has seen a 37 per cent decrease in the number of cancellations due to crew shortages after hiring over 1,000 new employees over the past year.
The company also expects these new compensation levels should only help continue that trend.
Bargaining unit wages are slated for two more negotiation rounds within the next 18 months, including a second wage reopener in April 2025, followed by the finalization of the full collective agreement in October 2025.
