Thanks for your ‘patience,’ Eby says to public over B.C. workers strike

British Columbia’s premier said it’s been a frustrating time for residents as a public service workers dispute drags into its seventh week, but he appreciates their patience.

David Eby said Tuesday the government is working closely to ensure a fair offer is being made to members of the BC General Employees’ Union, and the government is hoping to get back to the bargaining table as soon as possible.

Speaking at an unrelated news conference, Eby said it has been an “incredibly challenging time” not just for the restaurant sector but for many British Columbians who are looking to get government services, such as permits or licences.

“It has been a long strike. I know it’s frustrating, but we hope to get back to the table to resolve this as quickly as possible.”

Finance Minister Brenda Bailey, who speaks for the government in the dispute, said in a video statement over the weekend that the government can’t agree to a deal that makes service delivery too expensive to maintain.

“What we can do is deliver government workers’ compensation that keeps up with inflation and offers even more to our lowest wage earners. It’s fair and it’s in touch with today’s reality,” said Bailey in the video.

About 25,000 union members are off the job across 20 ministries, Crown corporations, and agencies, including liquor and cannabis warehouses, cutting off supplies to private stores.

Eby said once the strike is over, the supply challenges that the restaurant industry, and liquor and cannabis retailers face will be resolved.

Paul Finch, president of the BCGEU, said there has been no indication from the province that it plans to come back to the table.

“We don’t believe that their words are matching their actions, ” said Finch.

“Frankly, they haven’t indicated they’re willing to negotiate. Negotiations are back and forth. It means both sides have to move to try and find common ground. They haven’t been willing to do that,” added Finch.

Finch said the union will let the impact of the strike sink in for now, but it is hoping to see the government come to the table with a reasonable offer.

Walker Patton, co-founder of the BC Cannabis Alliance, said he hopes the government can return to talks to find a “fair path” forward for the workers.

Most cannabis cannot be stockpiled indefinitely since its quality and flavour could degrade over time, he said.

Patton said the B.C. branch warehouse is probably sitting on tens of millions of dollars worth of product that belongs to cannabis producers from all over Canada.

“And that inventory right now is decreasing in value day after day while it remains locked up in that warehouse,” said Patton.

The alliance represents nearly all small-scale producers in B.C., and Patton said they are “the only reason why cannabis retailers in B.C. are still open.”

Small producers are eligible for the province’s direct delivery program, which was launched by the BC Liquor Distribution Branch to help small cultivators enter the regulated cannabis market.

“Without the inventory that we are supplying them right now, they would be closed. Their staff would be laid off,” said Patton.

But Patton said the big problem is that even though the small producers are working hard to maintain the supply, they still need to pay a 15 per cent wholesale “proprietary fee” charged by the BC Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch.

“We have to do all this extra work as a result of the BCLDB shutdown, and we have to pay all the extra money that we’re getting from doing that extra work back to the BCLDB while they were closed,” said Patton.

“That’s really hard for us, because our small producers are already struggling financially, and this makes it even worse.”

The union said earlier that it countered the government’s offer of a five per cent wage increase over two years with a request for eight per cent over the same period.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 14, 2025.

Nono Shen, The Canadian Press