Patient transfer drivers reach tentative agreement on first contract

With the assistance of mediator Vince Ready, CUPE 873-03 and SN Transport have agreed to terms for a tentative agreement.

Details of the first collective agreement for the local, reached last night after one session of mediated talks that began yesterday, will be disclosed to members at a ratification meeting scheduled for Tuesday (June 16).

"I want to thank the members for their solidarity leading up to and through the duration of the recent job action, and other CUPE locals, staff and other unions who stood with us on the line," said CUPE 873 President Bronwyn Barter.

"We look forward to putting this labour dispute behind us and working with the employer to implement the first collective agreement for these members."

Last week the local held a series of rotating job actions after previous rounds of bargaining ended in failure. The two parties then agreed to appoint Vince Ready as mediator for the talks held yesterday.

The 115 members of CUPE 873-03 who work for SN Transport are patient transfer drivers who bring patients to and from medical appointments at hospitals and clinics throughout the Lower Mainland. They voted to join CUPE in July 2014 and began bargaining for their first contract a month later.