District of Squamish receives 72-hour strike notice from CUPE 2269

The District of Squamish (the “District”) has received strike notice from CUPE 2269 (the “Union”), the Bargaining Unit representing approximately 250 employees of the District.

 

The timing of the notice means that the Union is able to begin strike action as of Thursday, October 2 at 10:11 a.m., unless the two parties reach agreement.

 

District operations, programs and services continue to operate as normal until strike action begins.

 

What residents can expect:

In the event the Union initiates a general strike, all Union members, in all departments within the District, would stop working completely at all locations. If the Union initiates a rotating strike, there would be a series of work stoppages by different departments or at different locations. The Union could also initiate what is commonly referred to as “work to rule”. This generally means that employees attend work and do exactly what is required of them in their job descriptions and nothing more, including refusing overtime.  

 

Work deemed as essential services will not be disrupted. Essential services are those that are necessary to maintain the health and safety of the community. These include services such as water and sewer treatment, and fire and police protection.

 

Background:

The Collective Agreement between the District and CUPE 2269 (the “Parties”) expired on December 31, 2024. The District bargaining team has been at the table with the Union since October 2024. Negotiations progressed until the Union indicated that the Parties were at impasse on July 4, 2025. The Union walked away from the bargaining table stating that they did not believe the District had proposed sufficient wage increases.

 

The District’s most recent offer included general wage increases equal to those already agreed to in much larger metro municipalities, such as the Cities of Coquitlam and Vancouver. The increases proposed equate to a 3.5% increase in 2025 and a 3% increase in 2026. This follows the most recent three-year contract (2022-2024) which increased wages by 11.5% over three years, plus a 4.5% one-time cost-of-living cash payment in 2024.

 

Employee wages are funded by taxation and utility fees, and the District is responsible to taxpayers in the amounts of its offers at the bargaining table. The District empathizes with affordability challenges that employees may face and highly values its hard-working and dedicated employees. The District maintains that the package offered to the Union is fair and works to address affordability and work/life balance concerns that employees have raised, while ensuring the District remains responsible to taxpayers given the substantial tax and utility fee pressures anticipated in the coming years.

 

Stay informed:

The District will continue to provide updates to the community as the situation develops and notify the community of any disruptions to programs and services.  Stay tuned to squamish.ca/strike for updates.

September 29, 2025