Construction of a new hospital in Duncan, B.C., on Vancouver Island is at odds with its commitment to the province’s union-friendly “community benefits agreement.” indigenous rights,
A Couchian Tribes member and owner of a local contracting firm has spoken out.
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John Coleman said that his and other indigenously owned companies were being sidelined in their own traditional sector.
“I thought it was an all-inclusive thing here,” said Coleman, owner of John-Co Contracting.
“Basically, I’m backward. You know how much money is being withheld from these unions and this CBA? … They’re stealing from our community.”
The $1.45 billion Cochin District Hospital Replacement Project is the first major health facility to be built under the Community Benefit Agreement, which includes increasing Indigenous employment. Yet companies owned by the Couchian Tribes said they were being shut down because their workers are not members of unions under the agreement.
“It sounds very depressing,” said Lydia Hvitsam, chief of the Couchian Tribes.
“The term does not correspond to the inclusion that they have been consistently using in their community benefits agreement and path to economic reconciliation.”
Even with BC committed to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Chief Hvitsam said the system needed to change by excluding their member companies from the mega-project unless their workers unionized Is.
“We have proposed solutions and we keep hearing no,” he told Global News.
“We come back and we propose another solution. Opportunities are slipping away.”
In a statement, the BC government told Global News it is in “dialogue” with the Cowhan Tribes regarding the matter.
“We are in dialogue with the Cauchan tribes to discuss their concerns,” Health Ministry staff said in an email.
“We are listening and continue to work to support economic opportunities for our members. Local Indigenous business people are working on this project, including members of the Cochin Tribe.
Coleman said he planned to hire at least 15 workers on the project. Instead, he said the economic impact has been devastating, forcing him to change his business and send back the equipment.
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