As thousands of British Columbia government workers hit the picket lines Tuesday, the province's finance minister said there had been communication with the union to convince its team to come back to the bargaining table.

Brenda Bailey said representatives from the province and B.C. Government Employees' Union were meeting to "explore opportunities" to get back to talks to reach a new collective agreement under its so-called balanced measures mandate.

But the head of the union said it was "unacceptable" that the government wanted them back at the table without bringing an improved wage offer.

About two thousand members of the BC General Employees' Union set up picket lines and tables with coffee and doughnuts for workers in front of provincial government offices in Victoria, Surrey and

See Full Page