The B.C. Lions are scheduled to say goodbye to Empire Field when they host the Toronto Argonauts on Sept. 10. Two weeks later, the Vancouver Whitecaps are scheduled to close the temporary stadium when they host the Seattle Sounders.
Scheduled is the key word, because the Sept. 30 reopening of B.C. Place Stadium from its $563 million renovation could be derailed if B.C. Pavilion Corporation and its unionized workers dont agree on a new contract next week.
Representatives of local 1703 of the B.C. Government and Services Employment Union and PavCo are to meet Wednesday and Thursday with mediator Mark Brown. The union has called its members to meet Sept. 10 and Sept. 23 at the YWCA Hotel for a bargaining update on renewal of collective agreement, according to a memo.
Depending on the outcome of negotiations, members could vote to strike or sign a new contract.
If the union issued 72-hour strike notice and erected a picket line, work to finish could be disrupted and the Lions Sept. 30 game could be in jeopardy.
The one-month countdown to Sept. 30 passed without fanfare on Aug. 30. Work continues to apply the Polytan Ligaturf synthetic field, install seats, assemble the shoebox-style scoreboard, test interior and exterior lighting and refine the fixed and retractable roofing.
The B.C. Lions are promoting the Sept. 10 game as The End of an Empire and advertising that Lions Pride is moving downtown. The club played at the original Empire Stadium from 1954 to 1982.
We're certainly not involved in that part of [negotiations] and I have all the confidence in the world that PavCo will do what they need to do, the negotiations will go well and they'll get completed, said Lions president Dennis Skulsky.
If talks fail, neither the Lions nor Whitecaps will be homeless.
Empire Field is not going anywhere for the next few months, so that's the good news, Skulsky said. We have made no contingency plans. Normally they do take till the last minute or the 23rd hour, and the right people are involved for both sides. I think that the union will see it's a great opportunity for them, it's a great opportunity for PavCo to showcase this city in a world class venue.
Whitecaps chief executive Paul Barber did not return a Courier phone call.
Until there's something to comment on, there's no reason for him to call and say no comment, said Whitecaps spokesman Nathan Vanstone. We're working towards Oct. 2 [against the Portland Timbers] as our home opener at B.C. Place.
The agreement expired May 31 and PavCo, based on B.C. public service guidelines, is proposing no raise for the 20 to 25 full-time staff, 30 part-timers and 300 event-specific staff.
In February 2005, BCGEU workers went on strike, delaying set-up for the annual boat show. Labour ministry intervention enabled settlement and prevented cancellation. Security guards, housekeepers, ushers and technicians approved a four-year deal in May 2007 with a 9.5 percent raise and signing bonus.
