Around 100 construction workers from across B.C. are calling on the provincial government to scrap its Community Benefits Agreements (CBA) program.

The B.C. government introduced the CBA in 2018 to prioritize local, Indigenous, women and apprentice workers for provincial projects. It requires all workers on government projects to join an approved union.

The workers visiting the legislature are not members of the unions chosen by the government. The main concern raised by the workers is that the government’s plan will drive up project costs.

“This government has all the evidence it needs to come to its senses and conclude its restrictive CBA is a costly mistake for all British Columbians,” said Christian Labour Association of Canada (CLAC) union government relations manager Ryan Bruce.

“It tramples on worker rights, jacks up the cost of taxpayer-funded infrastructure projects and is driving away good contractors. The big question is, why carry on with such a lousy deal?”

The first agreement was signed in connection with the $1.377-billion Pattullo Bridge replacement.

The project is expected to employ between 1,200 and 1,400 workers to take the old bridge down and build a new one between New Westminster and Surrey.

The concerned workers say the CBA will add $100 million to the cost of the Pattullo Bridge replacement project. They are also concerned that 85 per cent of the province’s construction workforce is not part of the Building Trades Unions, the required option under the government’s agreement.

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