BREAKING: Hospitality Workers at Parsnip Lodge Authorize Strike

Risk of disruption to Coastal GasLink pipeline project

British Columbia – On Saturday, hospitality workers at Horizon North Parsnip Lodge near Prince George voted 95% in favour of strike action. The 150 workers – including room attendants, kitchen staff, janitors, and front desk agents – are represented by UNITE HERE Local 40. Parsnip Lodge, set to close permanently this year, houses up to 1,200 Coastal GasLink pipeline workers. A strike at the property would affect the pipeline project as alternate mass accommodations for workers in the region are not available.

Horizon North operates Parsnip Lodge on behalf of Coastal GasLink. Parsnip Lodge hospitality workers are asking the employer to respect their hard work by providing three months of severance pay per year of service at the worksite. The Lodge opened and unionized with UNITE HERE Local 40 in 2020.

“Camp hospitality workers across British Columbia deserve to be valued for their services. These workers provide a home away from home for thousands of workers in remote areas, and they are critical to the success of major construction projects in our province. Our members at Parsnip Lodge have spent years taking care of guests working on the Coastal GasLink pipeline. The workers want to be compensated with fair severance pay as the project nears completion. We are hopeful we can resolve this issue with the employer in bargaining and avoid a strike action at the site,” said Zailda Chan, UNITE HERE Local 40 President.

UNITE HERE Local 40 also represents camp hospitality workers at Cedar Valley Lodge and Crossroads Lodge in Kitimat. Earlier this year, workers at the two camp sites voted in favour of their new collective agreements, averting strike actions. The new contacts included substantial pay increases and improved workload protections.

The Union and the employer are currently in bargaining.

 

Media contact: Sharan Pawa, 604-710-1693, [email protected]