BC Hydro Contractors get a Shock from Power Company

VICTORIA - With high winds and heavy rain forecast for Vancouver Island, get ready for the possibility that some power will be knocked out in some communities.
If and when that happens, you'll be able to count on local workers, on the job around the clock, to remove downed trees from power lines, so electricity can be restored.

But now, those workers say they've been given a shock by their employer: BC Hydro.

Changes to the way the power company hires, has small local operators worried they'll soon be nothing more than glorified tree trimmers.

Victoria's Steve Lush has been in the business for 30 years. He claims under the new system contractors will be paid by the hour, not based on performance.

And he fears big businesses from outside the Vancouver Island, even outside BC, will use economies of scale to bid lower and drive smaller operators out.

BC Hydro says the changes are all about lowering ratepayers' bills.

The company claims it could save less than $2 million, an amount Lush says is worth investing to keep local operators, familiar with the communities they serve, on the ground.

The NDP Energy Critic calls the changes "short-sighted." John Horgan says money saved upfront will only be spent later.

He says driving away competition now, will cause bigger businesses to increase their rates when its time for the next contract renewal.

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