Update: BCGEU - September 8, 2025

Update: BCGEU - September 8, 2025

Dear ABLE BC Members and industry colleagues,

As you know, the BC General Employees' Union (BCGEU) began job action on September 2, 2025, with BCGEU members walking picket lines at key government sites in Victoria, Surrey, and Prince George, and the Royal BC Museum.

The Union escalated its job action on September 4, expanding picket lines to include workers at the Ministry of Finance in downtown Vancouver.

Today (Monday, September 8) marks the fifth consecutive day of picketing. The BCGEU is continuing to escalate its strike action, with additional picket lines expected in more cities across the province this week (see detailed list below).

Liquor & Cannabis Distribution Branch Not Yet Targeted

During a press conference this morning, Union president Paul Finch confirmed that additional members will walk out at about a dozen new sites, including in Nelson, Williams Lake, Kamloops, Smithers, Nanaimo, and Fort St. John.

“Tomorrow morning you’re going to see picket lines come up in cities across the province,” Finch said. “That’s over 1,000 more BCGEU members joining their colleagues on the picket line demanding fair wages.”

CTV News also reported that despite claims from industry insiders over the weekend, Finch stressed that liquor distribution warehouses are not part of the latest strike expansion:

“We will not be targeting the liquor distribution centers, despite some creative reports we heard,” Finch said. “That’s not on the list of sites we’ve given at this time. But let me be clear - absolutely everything is on the table.”

New Picket Lines Forming

The BCGEU has provided CTV News with a list of addresses it will be picketing at on Tuesday, September 9:

Victoria
- 976 Meares St., a B.C. Public Service Agency office
- 617 Government St., the Financial Services Branch
Nanaimo
- 2080 Labieux Rd., the Integrated Land Management Bureau
- 2100 Labieux Rd., the Ministry of Transportation
Surrey
- 10475 138 St., Surrey North Community Corrections Office
- 14323 57 Ave., Surrey Pretrial Service Centre
Kamloops
- 441 Columbia St., FrontCounter B.C. office
- 447 Columbia St., Ministry of Transportation
Williams Lake
- 640 Borland St., Ministry of Environment and Parks
Kelowna
- 478 Bernard Ave., Service B.C. office
Cranbrook
- 117 10th Ave. South, Cranbrook Community Corrections
Nelson
- 566 Stanley St., Ministry of Children and Family Development
Fort St. John
- 10003 110th Ave., Ministry of Environment and Parks
Smithers
- 3726 Alfred Ave., FrontCounter BC

ABLE BC Advocacy Work

ABLE BC understands the uncertainty this creates for the industry and is continuously monitoring the situation. We are in regular communication with government and supply chain stakeholders and remain committed to advocating for your businesses.

In response to member concerns and to ensure strong, unified communication, we recently hosted separate townhalls for the liquor and cannabis industries regarding this matter (and will continue to organize more as updates develop). These sessions allowed us to:

Ensure all stakeholders are informed and aligned.
Confirm that we’re united as an industry to address emerging challenges.
Provide clarity on current developments and the potential pipeline of actions.

Though bargaining remains a dynamic process, ABLE BC is committed to keeping everyone informed, providing guidance, and supporting viable paths forward for the industry.

If you have any other questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Bo Chen (bo@ablebc.ca).

Did You Know: Helpful Resources

Updated Edition of BCL Hospitality Handbook: designed for hospitality customers who order their liquor products through BCL stores. The handbook covers BCL’s improved ordering process end-to-end - from submitting accurate orders to pickup, shipping, payment, and returns. The handbook was informed by input from ABLE BC’s Hospitality Working Group, which provided BCL and the LDB with feedback on standardizing the ordering experience and improving service for hospitality licensees.
List of Producers Able to Ship Direct to Liquor Licensees (scroll down to ‘Private Distributors’ to download the full list): to order products sold directly by private breweries and distributors, please contact the distributor directly and set up an account.
List of Producers Able to Ship Direct to Cannabis Licensees: used to assist cannabis retailers in verifying the products being offered by direct delivery producers that are registered for the program. The direct delivery vendors will have a smaller subset of products in stock at any point in time. Find the two resources on the wholesale website under Resources, Direct Delivery, and Direct Delivery Product Catalogue or Direct Delivery Contact List.