Election 2026: The future is still ours to write

Dear Members,

As British Columbians process and come to terms with the outcome of this weekend’s election, I wanted to share some thoughts on where we have been, and where we are going. 

To begin, I want to recognize and appreciate everyone who worked on this campaign, and the local community elections before it. The number of CUPE members active across the province was truly inspiring. While the outcome was not what we hoped, that should take nothing away from the immense pride you should feel in your work. I also want to recognize the many CUPE members who were candidates in the local government and school board elections, and in the BC election, and of course the members of CUPE 3787, who work directly for the BC NDP and who gave it their all in the past weeks. This is the leadership that builds strong communities, and that we will need as we look to the future. 

Thank you to those who served in the BC NDP government over the past nine years, including the many who worked tirelessly in the countless and critical supporting roles. Public and political life is challenging, and even more so when governing through difficult times. This BC NDP government, from 2017 to today, has been in office through an extremely turbulent period, which included the COVID-19 pandemic, the inflation crisis, and most recently, the US trade war. Despite this, the BC NDP leave office with a list of accomplishments like highest minimum wage in all of Canada, having cut the cost of childcare by nearly 50 percent, and with more schools, transit, care and healthcare facilities, and affordable housing in communities all over the province. And, importantly for CUPE members, with a record of public bargaining that, despite some challenges, delivered the best settlements workers have seen in generations.

Sadly, that is now in the past and we must look to the future. Today we face a BC Conservative government with a substantial majority of seats, yet an uncertain agenda. While we hope that the new government will engage meaningfully and respectfully with the labour movement about how to move the province forward, we must also be realistic. The BC Conservative platform looks much like that of the BC Liberals from 2001 to 2017, and those were not good years for working people, or the public services we deliver. We have also seen the extremist views of several Conservative candidates around the province, many of whom are now MLAs, and we don’t yet know how these will be represented in government. Accordingly, as we hope for the best, we also need to prepare to fight for what matters, protect the victories and rights we worked so hard to earn, and prevent those most vulnerable in our communities from being scapegoated and attacked. 

As always, the future is ours to write. Together, we are a force to be reckoned with, both here in British Columbia, and when joined together with all 800,000 CUPE members across the country. Our tactics and approach may change, but our goals remain the same: build better services and better communities, and support the workers who deliver the services our communities rely on. Through our strength, commitment, and solidarity I know we can keep making life better for CUPE members, and the hundreds of thousands of working people in every region of our province. 

In solidarity,

Karen Ranalletta, President
CUPE BC