CANADA, January 24 - Harry Bains, Minister of Labour, has issued the following statement regarding the Metro Vancouver transit labour dispute:

“Not having transit service is a huge challenge for the hundreds of thousands of people who rely on it. I have appointed Vince Ready as a special mediator in the ongoing collective bargaining dispute between Metro Vancouver transit supervisors represented by CUPE 4500, and the Coast Mountain Bus Company.

“Ready is a highly regarded mediator in the labour relations community, with a long and distinguished record of settling disputes. With his appointment, the parties have all the tools they need to reach an agreement, and I thank them for agreeing to work with him to end this dispute.

“Under the Labour Relations Code, a special mediator assists in settling the terms of a collective agreement and issues a report to the Minister of Labour and the parties if no settlement is reached.

“As of tomorrow, Jan. 25, 2024, Ready will work with the parties for a period of up to six days to secure a resolution. If a settlement cannot be reached within this timeline, he will issue non-binding recommendations on Feb. 2, 2024, with both parties having five days to either accept or reject the recommendations.”