While BCGEU strike has dominated headlines, another strike in Victoria has been dragging on since Aug. 20.
Coast Victoria Hotel and Blue Crab Restaurant workers, represented by UNITE HERE Local 40, went on strike Aug. 20. On Sept. 17, the company locked 90 striking hospitality workers out of their jobs.
"After several weeks of sincere and sustained efforts to negotiate a collective agreement, we have reached a deeply challenging impasse," Coast Victoria Hotel & Marina by APA told Victoria News.
The unionized workers demand a wage increase, as well as safe housekeeping workloads, proper staffing and respect on the job, the union said in a written statement.
“Victoria is booming for hotel owners, but for the people doing the work, the city is becoming impossible to live in,” said Melissa Irvine, a room attendant with the hotel and a union spokesperson.
The unionized workers have been in negotiations for a new collective agreement, the last of which expired on April 30.
Striking workers are currently about $1 to $1.50 apart on wage proposals, depending on the job classification, Irvine told Victoria News. Housekeepers were originally paid $22.84, and the union initially sought a raise to just above the current living wage in Victoria – $26.78 – to $27. "We did drop that to $26," Irvine said.
On June 1, the hotel voluntarily implemented "significant wage increases" for all unionized employees without bargaining, said an email from Stephen Roughley, general manager of the hotel.
He also said employees have access to the "best health benefits and pension plan" among UNITE HERE properties in B.C.
Irvine said the raise, to $25 an hour, was rejected.
For the striking workers, the wage isn't the main sticking point in preventing a deal – it's work safety, she said.
"Many people do not feel safe going to work at the Coast Victoria anymore," she said.
Issues for the hotel staff got "progressively worse" after significant room renovations last year, explained Irvine.
Since the renovations, the number of rooms they are expected to clean in their collective agreement has remained the same, though the workload has increased, she explained, leading to injured staff and staff going on leave.
"You just can't physically clean the same number of rooms as you did before, because we now are responsible for cleaning the decks and vacuuming and mopping floors, as well as making the [towel] birds ourselves. There are extra tasks," she said.
She described other issues, such as the beds being lowered by over a foot, requiring bending at uncomfortable angles. She also mentioned broken and damaged equipment in the kitchen, such as an oven that does not close. "There's heat coming out of it, and people standing in front of it for four hours at a time."
Coast Victoria is owned and operated by Tokyo-based hotel chain APA Hotels & Resorts. In February, APA reported record earnings across international operations of 226 billion yen ($2.1 billion CAD) and stated in a company publication that the company was “setting sales and profit records for the second period in a row.”
Roughley said they made the "difficult decision" to initiate a legal lockout of all striking unionized employees after what they say is a decline to "engage in further bargaining or mediation."
"This decision was not made lightly. Despite repeated invitations to return to the table, including offers of mediation, UNITE HERE Local 40 has declined to engage in good-faith negotiations. Instead, the union has chosen to submit proposals without meaningful dialogue, leaving no path toward resolution," according to Roughley's email.
Irvine explained that the hotel had asked for a labour board mediator back in May, but when the union called the labour board, there was no one available until September.
"So we honestly thought this was something that could be solved before then.
"We have set up two bargaining dates on the 14th and 15th with a labour board mediator. So we have not declined mediation ... our proposal has remained the same for the past two months. We just have not received a reply."
Irvine said that with all of the strikes happening across Canada, she feels part of a larger movement.
"It seems like a lot of people have gone to the point where, you know, living in poverty isn't good enough anymore," she said. "One way that we have really felt like a bigger part of the community is that we had a rally last Thursday, and over 300 people showed up for us."
In the meantime, the hotel remains open. Roughley said while some services may be limited, the hotel is committed to minimizing disruptions when possible.
"We regret the impact this lockout may have on our guests, employees, and the wider community. Our objective remains unchanged: to reach a fair, sustainable, and negotiated settlement. We stand ready to return to the bargaining table at any time and continue to call on the union to engage in good-faith discussions so that we can resolve this matter quickly and fairly."
