B.C. Transit’s Fraser Valley bus drivers are joining the Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology’s DBplus pension plan.

After a strike action that lasted 124 days earlier this year, the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 561 secured a new six-year contract agreement for its 213 members who work in the communities of Abbotsford, Agassiz-Harrison, Chilliwack, Hope and Mission.

Read: Unifor, PW Transit agreement includes CAAT DBplus pension membership

Starting April 1, 2024, the workers will officially be part of the CAAT’s plan with a 3.5 per cent employer-matching contribution that will increase to five per cent on April 1, 2025.

“In this last round of negotiations, wages and pension were the priority for our members,” says Randy Kootte, CUPE Local 561’s president, in an emailed statement to Benefits Canada. He said the agreement opens the door for the union to negotiate even higher contributions in future rounds of bargaining, adding CAAT’s DBplus plan is an excellent addition to its members’ overall compensation package.

In June, Pacific Western Transit Canada workers in the B.C. communities of Pemberton, Squamish and Whistler joined the CAAT DBplus plan, following an agreement negotiated by Unifor Local 114.

Read: Woodbridge Foam, Unifor agreement includes CAAT DBplus pension membership