Winnipeg city council is set to vote Thursday on a motion that would eliminate a requirement that drivers providing the city’s Transit Plus accessible transportation service be classified as employees of the companies the city contracts to deliver the service.
The requirement was added to Transit Plus contracts by city council in July 2023, after some drivers organized in 2020 to demand better working conditions, citing a lack of breaks, scheduling problems and safety concerns. That 2023 decision required drivers working for city-hired contractors to be classified as employees rather than independent contractors, which supporters say guarantees them minimum wage, employer contributions to the Canada Pension Plan and Employment Insurance, and coverage under workers’ compensation.
Coun. Brian Mayes, who represents St. Vital, opposes removing the employee classification requirement, calling it a “ridiculous anti-worker provision” to eliminate. He said the 2023 rule was a compromise reached after council rejected proposals to have city staff directly deliver part of the service, and that removing it would risk allowing sub-minimum wages for drivers.
The same motion would also remove a separate clause requiring that any inflationary cost increases paid to Transit Plus contractors to cover wages be directly passed on to drivers as raises. Mayes argued that provision should stay in place so that increased funding intended for wages actually reaches workers.
Contract Transparency Also on the Table
A third element of the motion would eliminate a requirement that public reports on Transit Plus contracts disclose the names of companies that bid on the work, their bid amounts, and how they were scored during evaluation.
Coun. Janice Lukes, chairwoman of the public works committee, said the wage-indexing clause is now redundant because similar wage protections are already built directly into contracts with service providers. She also said the city does not typically publish detailed bid information and evaluation scores for other municipal contracts, and said removing the disclosure requirement for Transit Plus would simplify administrative processes to bring it in line with standard practice.
Lukes said companies that hold Transit Plus contracts have told the city they are struggling to find enough workers under the current employee-status rules, and that removing the requirement could make it easier to recruit contract drivers, who she said are more readily available than full-time employees.
Union and Mayoral Candidate Push Back
James Van Gerwen, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1505, which represents Winnipeg Transit drivers, is also urging council to reject the proposed changes. He said drivers without employee status would lose access to protections under Manitoba labour standards. Van Gerwen said the union’s preferred outcome would be for the city to hire Transit Plus drivers directly, arguing that would give the city greater control over the service and its quality.
Mayoral candidate Kevin Klein also spoke out against the proposed changes this week, saying drivers who deliver the service to seniors and people with disabilities should be treated as employees with access to wages, Canada Pension Plan contributions, Employment Insurance and workers’ compensation. Mayes said he attended Klein’s announcement but is not endorsing his mayoral campaign, while thanking him for drawing attention to the issue.
A Winnipeg Transit spokesperson said in an email that the city’s contractors have faced difficulty recruiting qualified drivers under the current arrangement. Winnipeg Transit did not make anyone available for an interview.
The public works committee and the executive policy committee have already voted in favour of the proposed changes this month. Mayes said he hopes the full council will vote against the motion when it comes up for a final decision on Thursday.
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