Hundreds of Atira workers join BCGEU

VANCOUVER — The B-C General Employees’ Union says hundreds of workers from the embattled social housing operator Atira Women’s Resource Society have joined the union.

The B-C-G-E-U says more than 500 employees from Atira officially joined after organizing across nearly three dozen job sites, calling it a “significant win” after a large majority voted in favour of joining.

The union says Atira employees can now collectively work to deal with the organization’s working and living conditions, staffing issues and other safety concerns.

Atira C-E-O Janice Abbott stepped down this month after a scathing audit of B-C Housing found that her husband, Shayne Ramsay, then the Crown corporation’s C-E-O, had violated conflict-of-interest rules by steering funding to his wife’s organization. (The Canadian Press)