Driver examiners could walk off job this week if government doesn't pay up

Albertans seekinga driver's licencecould be out of luck come Thursday if the government doesn't bow to the demands of examiners in the province who say they're ready to walk off the job.

The threat comes ahead of the deprivatization of thedriver examination system, one of the changes coming to theindustryfollowing the Humboldt Broncos bus crash last April.

On March 1, 2019, all driver examiners will work for the provincial government, which said it welcomes current testers to apply for the new jobs.

The Certified Driver Examiners Association (CDEA) is upset with the process and has sent a demand letter to the transportation minister, a copy of which has been obtained by CBC News.

The letter demands the government buy out driverexaminers' businessesandfor those who move over to work as public employees, the CDEA wants the salaries it says its members were promised.

The CDEA has also threatened to take legal action if its members aren't compensated accordingly.

"What we're trying to do is have the public realize thatthis could happen to any other small business in this province,"said CDEA executive director Pete Llewellyn.

Province responds

Of the approximately 100 CDEA members in the province, Llewellyn expects about 80 per cent to participate in the job action, which he said will last at least two weeks but could go longer.

That means it will be very difficult to find a tester for anyone wanting to acquire a driver'slicence or an upgrade to a commercial driver's licence.

"Change does occur but change should occur for the right reasons," said Llewellyn.

Llewellyn said examiners were originally promised salaries of $70,000 to $80,000 per year. But the latest numbers put compensation in the $53,000 to $67,000 range, which he said is half of what some examiners are earning annually.

The transportation ministry confirms it has received the letter and said its legal team is "currently reviewing it."

"Changes to the driver examiner model, which have received widespread public support, will improve service for rural and urban Albertans," reads a statement from Transportation Minister Brian Mason's office.

According to driver examiner salary ranges provided by the Alberta government for nine of the 13 provinces and territories, Alberta's employees will be among the highest paid, second only to Yukon.

Some examiners, like Llewellyn, have been running their businessessince the system was privatized in 1993 under then-premier Ralph Klein.

Examiners not properly monitored

Llewellyn said he, and others, havebeen paying business taxes for 25 years and want fair market value for their companies.

The proposed changes to Alberta'sdriving industry are not only tied to the fatal Humboldt bus crash, in which 16 people were killed and another 13 were injured, they also followan independent report published 2 years ago. The report identified problemsin the industry such as inconsistent road test fees andpoor service.

But Llewellyn said the government sat on the years-old report and the shortcomings in the current systemshould be attributed to the government's failure to monitor examiners.

There are examiners who haven't been monitored in five years and others who have failed their evaluations but were allowed to continue testing, said Llewellyn.

He said the provincial government ignoredhis organization's "best of both worlds" proposal to keep the system privatized but strengthen monitoring.

'Wild West kind of system'

In October, Masonannounced the end of the only privatized road test framework in the country, calling it a "Wild West kind of system."

The minister said his department receives complaints about the system every week, including incidents of harassment, inconsistenttesting and overcharging.

"There is a complete lack of oversight," he said in announcing the industry overhaul.

The government is hopeful current examiners will apply for itsnew positions.

If the association isn't satisfied by the government's response to its demands by Wednesday evening, its members will begin a strike, which Llewellyn says will last at least two weeks.

The CDEA also plans to take the case to court.

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