Today, UFCW 1518 marked another historic milestone for app-based workers as Uber drivers in B.C.’s interior region, including Kelowna and Kamloops, joined the union, expanding the world’s first collective agreement for Uber rideshare drivers.
With their unionization, drivers in Passenger Transportation Board Region 4, which covers the Okanagan-Kootenay-Cariboo areas will become covered by the landmark agreement first negotiated by Uber drivers in Victoria, expanding its protections and benefits to hundreds more drivers in British Columbia.
“The agreement reached by Uber drivers in Victoria made history. Now we’re seeing that history continue to grow,” said Patrick Johnson, President of UFCW 1518. “Drivers in Interior B.C. saw what was possible when workers came together, and they decided to organize for those same protections, representation, and improvements.”
The expansion demonstrates that more drivers are choosing collective bargaining after seeing the gains achieved by their fellow workers. It also reinforces that the agreement was not a one-time achievement, but the beginning of a new chapter for organizing workers in the platform economy.
Expanding Rights for Uber Drivers
The collective agreement, the first of its kind anywhere in the world for rideshare drivers, includes:
- Bonuses for drivers – including a $250 union bonus to eligible drivers
- Access to a wellness fund that drivers can use to access benefits
- An in-app, time-bound process to resolve disputes
- Face-to-face representation to help support drivers
- Ability to challenge unfair ratings & unfair treatment
- Access to political representation in BC though lobbying meetings
“Uber drivers in B.C.’s interior are building on the historic achievement of drivers in Victoria,” said Barry Sawyer, UFCW Canada National President. “Through their union, these drivers are making it clear that app-based workers deserve a meaningful voice on the issues that affect their livelihoods. UFCW Canada is proud to support them as they continue building a stronger future for workers in the platform economy.”
Its expansion into the B.C. Interior signals that the agreement is becoming a model for app-based workers seeking greater fairness, stability, and a stronger voice on the job.
“A union gives us a meaningful voice on the issues that affect our livelihoods, including transparency, fairness, safety and account-related concerns, says Shane Sievers, a Kelowna-based Uber driver. “With proper representation, drivers don’t have to face these issues alone.”
With drivers in Massachusetts recently following suit with their own certification, this expansion comes as policymakers, platform companies, and workers around the world continue to debate the future of gig work and worker protections.
While platform work continues to grow across Canada and around the world, UFCW 1518 believes workers in the gig economy deserve the same opportunity to improve their protections and working conditions as workers in traditional industries.
“This platform economy isn’t the future of work—it’s already here,” Johnson said. “The question is whether the workers powering these platforms have a meaningful voice in shaping their jobs. What we’re seeing in British Columbia is that they can, and we believe more app-based workers will look at what’s been achieved here and see what’s possible for themselves.”
