Year: <span>2023</span>

Longshore workers at Western Canadian ports are returning to work – for now — after a labor board ruled that strike action taken Tuesday night by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada was illegal because the union failed to provide the required 72-hour notice.

But with the union subsequently giving that notice after the ruling by the Canada Industrial Relations Board, dockworkers are now poised to go on strike again on Saturday morning. The board ordered ILWU Canada to review potential damage claims with marine terminals over the strike action that was taken illegally Tuesday night.

The whiplash developments were set in motion late Tuesday when a caucus of ILWU Canada rejected the tentative labor agreement that last week ended the 13-day strike at the ports of Prince Rupert and Vancouver. The rejection came just five days after the end of the strike and as ports had begun to restore cargo flow after the disruption.

“The term of the collective agreement that was given with today’s uncertain times is far too long,” ILWU Canada President Rob Ashton said in a statement, referring to the four-year length of the tentative agreement meant to replace the contract that expired at the end of the March. “We must be able to readdress the uncertainty in the world’s financial markets for our members.”

ILWU Canada said it was remaining steadfast in seeking increased jurisdiction of maintenance work at marine terminals, noting that after achieving record profits in 2021 and 2022, employers had the financial resources to appropriately compensate workers for higher living costs.

The British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) bemoaned that the full ILWU Canada rank-of-file wasn’t able to vote on the tentative agreement. In rejecting the deal, ILWU Canada was “choosing to further harm Canada’s economy, international reputation, and most importantly, to Canadians, their livelihood and all those that rely on the stable supply chain,” BCMEA said in a statement late Tuesday.

Government ministers ‘looking at all options’

Canada’s ministers of Labor and Transport on Wednesday expressed grave disappointment in the union’s rejection of the agreement, saying they “are looking at all options” and would have more to share publicly on Thursday. The joint statement from Labor Minister Seamus O’Regan and Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said the tentative agreement was a “fair and balanced deal,” and ports needed to be open.

Terms of the tentative deal were not disclosed.

Attention now turns to Canada’s Parliament to end the strike, as it did at the Port of Montreal in 2021.

When the strike began July 1, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and the Retail Council of Canada urged Parliament to order port workers back to work. But there is no guarantee of swift passage of the legislation Parliament must pass for that to happen. It will likely take a coalition from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party and the Conservative Party to overcome the Democratic Party’s objections to any back-to-work legislation.

Parliament is currently in recess, having begun its summer break in June.

Source:

Szakonyi, M. (2023, July 19). Longshore workers at Western Canadian ports returning to work, for now. Journal of Commerce. https://www.joc.com/article/longshore-workers-western-canadian-ports-returning-work-now_20230719.html

July 18 (Reuters) – Dock workers at ports along Canada’s Pacific coast rejected a tentative four-year wage deal agreed with their employers last week and returned to the picket line, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) said on Tuesday.

The ILWU represents some 7,500 dock workers, who walked off the job on July 1 after failing to reach a new work contract with the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA), which represents the companies involved.

In a statement released Tuesday afternoon, the ILWU said its members had voted down the recommended terms of settlement because they did not believe the terms would protect their jobs.

“With the record profits that the BCMEA’s member companies have earned over the last few years the employers have not addressed the cost of living issues that our workers have faced over the last couple of years as all workers have,” the ILWU said in its statement…

Detail please refer to the news.

Source:

Williams, N. (2023, July 19). Canada port strike resumes after union members reject wage agreement. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/canada-port-workers-return-picket-line-after-rejecting-wage-agreement-2023-07-18/

It could take into September before the ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert fully recover from the 13-day dockworker strike that idled both western Canadian ports and disrupted trans-Pacific sailing schedules, industry observers told the Journal of Commerce Friday.

The strike ended Thursday when the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (Canada) and the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association agreed on terms for a tentative four-year contract.

But forwarders, shipping lines and trucking interests say they are advising their customers it will take weeks — possibly into September — for operations at Prince Rupert and Vancouver — Canada’s largest port — to return to normal.

The rule of thumb in the port and marine terminal industry is that for each day a port is shut down, it takes three to five days to recover, Julia Kuzeljevich, director of policy and communications at the Canadian International Freight Forwarders Association, told the Journal of Commerce.

“Maybe end of summer, early September,” Kuzeljevich said when assessing the timeline for a full recovery of the ports.

Views on the recovery period vary, but it is clearly not a matter of days.

“We look at it in weeks — three weeks to recover for every week of [a] shutdown,” an executive at a carrier that calls at Vancouver said.

Given the fact that eastbound trans-Pacific volumes have been lighter than usual and Canada’s agricultural exports are not yet in high season, the time for recovery may be a bit shorter, the source said.

Still, David Bennett, chief commercial officer at Canadian forwarder Farrow, said he would be “surprised” if the recovery period is only four or five days per day of shutdown. Bennett said the actual recovery could take as long as 10 days per day of shutdown — more than four months — given how dependent Vancouver and Prince Rupert are on shipping containers via rail to their major hubs in Toronto, Montreal and Chicago.

He noted that Canadian railroads issued temporary bans on sending trains to the West Coast from day one of the dockworker strike, and it will take some time to reposition trains and cars to the ports.

“We anticipate it will be weeks before there is a return to normalcy,” Bennett said.

CPKC expects ‘prolonged’ recovery

Canadian Pacific Kansas City Railway (CPKC) said Friday it is working closely with customers and marine terminals to clear the traffic backlogs as quickly and efficiently as possible. However, “given the duration of this strike — nearly two weeks shutting down most terminals at Canada’s largest port — supply chain recovery is expected to be prolonged,” a CPKC spokesperson said.

A Canadian National Railway (CN) spokesperson said CN is “now focused on implementing its orderly resumption plans to resume its movements to and from the ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert.”

David Earle, president and CEO of the British Columbia Trucking Association (BCTA), said two-thirds of the containers moving through Vancouver leave by rail, and clearing that backlog while receiving new inbound containers will take “weeks and weeks.” According to the Port of Vancouver website, rail container dwell times at all four of its container terminals were more than seven days, a level that is normally not reached.

As for truck gate traffic, Earle said BCTA members did not report any serious bottlenecks early Friday, although Vancouver did not reopen until Thursday’s evening shift.

A spokesperson at the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority said the port will apply a priority-based anchorage allocation system to balance the needs of all business sectors and commodities. Fourteen container ships were backed up outside of Vancouver when the strike ended Thursday.

“Recovery measures include close collaboration and monitoring to ensure port resources are assigned to best support time-sensitive cargo movement and ensure equitable distribution of shared resources,” the spokesperson said.

A spokesperson for the Prince Rupert Port Authority said operations there resumed Thursday evening and continued on Friday’s day shift, with both berths at the Fairview Container Terminal expected to be occupied.

“Operations have ramped up,” the spokesperson said. “The terminal is expecting to depart additional trains to begin the process of clearing backlogged cargo.” In addition to the two vessels at berth, three additional container ships were holding offshore Prince Rupert.

Source:

Mongelluzzo, B. (2023, July 14). Post-strike recovery for Western Canadian ports measured in weeks, not days: Sources. Journal of Commerce. https://www.joc.com/article/post-strike-recovery-western-canadian-ports-measured-weeks-not-days-sources_20230714.html

The 13-day longshore strike that hit the Western Canadian ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert ended Thursday after the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Canada and waterfront employers reached a deal on a tentative four-year contract.

The end of the strike came less than two days after Canada’s Minister of Labour ordered the federal mediator overseeing negotiations between the union and the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association to provide recommendations for a settlement. Those recommendations were presented to both sides on Wednesday, and they had 24 hours, or late morning Pacific time Thursday, to accept or reject the proposed terms. Rejection by either side would have forced the matter into the hands of the Canadian Parliament.

“The tentative agreement is subject to ratification by both parties, and subsequently, details of the agreement will not be released at this time,” the BCMEA said in a statement.

It added that it was “working closely with ILWU Canada and their locals and supply chain partners to safely resume operations as soon as possible.”

Marine terminals at Vancouver and Prince Rupert were scheduled to reopen for Thursday’s evening shift.

ILWU Canada was not immediately available for comment.

Working to restore terminal operations

The strike caused multiple ships to divert from Western Canada to Seattle and Tacoma, while also prompting at least two blank sailings. It also created a vessel backlog off Vancouver and Prince Rupert. There were 14 container ships at anchor or offshore at the Port of Vancouver Wednesday, according to the port’s website.

The Prince Rupert Port Authority said in a statement Thursday two of its seven terminals — DP World Prince Rupert’s Fairview Container Terminal and Drax’s Westview Wood Pellet Terminal – were “directly impacted” by the strike. PRPA added that five vessels are waiting at anchor or at sea to discharge at those terminals.

“PRPA, its terminal and rail supply chain partners and local labor will be working closely to re-establish fluidity and productivity so that we can begin to swiftly and effectively recover operations at the Port of Prince Rupert,” it said.

BCMEA said it “regrets the significant impact” the strike had on workers, customers and the Canadian economy. Earlier this week, the group said an estimated C$800 million of cargo was being disrupted daily by the longshore strike, representing 25% of the country’s total traded goods each day.

“We must collectively work together to not only restore cargo operations as quickly and safely as possible but to also rebuild the reputation of Canada’s largest gateway and ensure supply chain stability and resilience for the future,” BCMEA said.

Source:

JOC Staff. (2023, July 13). Western Canada port strike ends after deal reached on tentative four-year contract. Journal of Commerce. https://www.joc.com/article/western-canada-port-strike-ends-after-deal-reached-tentative-four-year-contract_20230713.html

Trans-Pacific carriers are changing schedule rotations so that US-bound cargoes can be unloaded in Seattle-Tacoma rather than Vancouver and will divert even more vessels as the strike by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Canada enters its second week, sources said Monday.

Meanwhile, vessel backlogs are building outside of Vancouver and Seattle-Tacoma, although the backlog changes constantly because additional vessels are arriving in the Pacific Northwest almost every day. According to the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority website, 14 container ships were at anchor or offshore of Vancouver on Monday.

Forwarders and a terminal operator told the Journal of Commerce at least six container ships that had been scheduled to call in Vancouver had been diverted to Seattle-Tacoma as of Monday. The ocean carriers make the final decision as to where vessels will rest at anchor as they await resumption of cargo handling in Vancouver.

The National Retail Federation on Friday said the ongoing longshore strike at the ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert should not have a “major impact” in the United States, but could still affect some retailers that move merchandise through Western Canada.

Vessel rotations to the North American Pacific Northwest often have Vancouver as the first port of call before the ships proceed to Seattle-Tacoma, so Vancouver-bound containers are stowed on the top rows of the vessels, a terminal operator told the Journal of Commerce. Since the ILWU in the US announced last week that it will boycott Canadian-destined cargo in a show of support for ILWU Canada, longshoremen in Seattle and Tacoma must remove Canadian-destined containers first in order to access the US-bound boxes. Then they reload the Vancouver containers onto the vessels.

No face-to-face talks Monday

Meanwhile, contract negotiations between ILWU Canada and the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) were not held on Monday, although the parties “continue to engage with the federal mediators,” according to a source familiar with the negotiations.

ILWU Canada launched its strike on July 1. Both sides remain far apart over two key issues — wages and a demand by ILWU Canada to extend its jurisdiction over maintenance work.

Employers offered a 14% wage hike over a four-year contract, while the union is seeking a 17% increase over a two-year contract, plus a lump sum payment of $8,000, according to a source familiar with the negotiations.

Source:

Mongelluzzo, B. (2023, July 10). Trans-Pacific carriers altering port rotations to avoid strike-hit Vancouver. Journal of Commerce. https://www.joc.com/article/trans-pacific-carriers-altering-port-rotations-avoid-strike-hit-vancouver_20230710.html

The container shipping industry in Western Canada is bracing for the possibility of an extended strike at the ports of Prince Rupert and Vancouver after longshore workers went on strike Saturday morning as threatened over a contract dispute.

The ports are adjusting operations to mitigate cargo buildup as both sides remain far apart on how to best fill existing heavy-duty maintenance jobs and whether the union’s remit should expand to other types of maintenance jobs at facilities, according to two sources close to the matter.

The Canada affiliate of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and waterfront employers also face a wide divide on what they’ll accept in salary increases, paralleling the major stumbling block US West Coast employers and longshore labor finally overcame in announcing a tentative deal on June 15 after more than a year of negotiations.

Canadian shippers moving cargo through the British Columbia ports have few options for diversions. The US West Coast longshore union on Thursday signaled its solidarity in a letter to its Canadian counterpart. The International Longshoremen’s Association, which handles cargo on the US and East Coasts, went a step farther, pledging Wednesday to not handle any diverted cargo from Vancouver and Prince Rupert. Through connecting rail networks, US importers and exporters also ship goods through the British Columbia ports and have more alternative routing options.

After ILWU Canada workers began a strike at 8 a.m. Pacific time on Saturday, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority said to mitigate backlogs it was adjusting how it directs and manages anchorage. For example, vessel anchorages in the inner harbor, where DP Centerm and GCT Vanterm operate, are now limited to 48 hours. Average rail dwell times at Vancouver marine terminals were under five days, according to port authority metrics, reflecting generally fluid cargo flow before containers stopped moving Saturday morning.

Late night bargaining sessions on Thursday and through Friday night between the Canada ILWU and employers, with from the assistance Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, failed to produce a contract agreement to replace the one that expired at the end of March. The ILWU filed a 72-hour strike notice with the federal government on Wednesday.

Canadian West Coast employers locked out the ILWU for less than 24 hours in May 2019 after an impasse in contract negotiations. Semi-automation, centered on the then new rail project at GCT Deltaport, frustrated negotiations, and now color current talks due to the prospect of some level of automation at a planned C$3 billion (US$ 2.2 billion) Vancouver terminal, Robert Bank Terminal 2.

Federal Labor Minister Seamus O’Regan on Saturday tweeted that mediators were still at the table, adding that the Trudeau government “cannot emphasize this enough — the best deals for both parties are reached at the table.”

All eyes on Ottawa

The government took a similar approach in 2021 to Montreal port strikes, signaling support for both sides to work out their differences through negotiation and praising the merits of collective bargaining.  Parliament passed back-to-work legislation after four weeks of sporadic port disruption at Montreal, ending the strike and forcing an arbitrated contract.

With Parliament out of session and unable to potentially pass back-to-work legislation, the pressure is on the Trudeau government to use its political capital to force a deal between ILWU Canada and the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is generally viewed within the Canadian shipping industry as having acted too slowly — and weakly — when containerized supply chains were significantly disrupted over the last three years.

The stakes are high this time, given the size of Vancouver and Prince Rupert, the country’s largest and third-largest ports by volume, respectively. Vancouver and Prince Rupert handle more than C$800 million (US $604 million) in trade daily, equating to a quarter of all of Canada’s trade in goods, according to the BCMEA.

Canadian industry on Wednesday urged the government to act, though, it expressed its support for collective bargaining. Canada’s supply chains are already fragile and the strike will ripple through agriculture to manufacturing industries, while consumer and businesses grapple with inflation, wrote Robin Guy, vice-president and deputy leader of government relations at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and David van Hemmen is vice-president at the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade.

“We are seeing signs that goods destined for Canada are already being routed to other ports, adding costs and increasing the environmental footprint of trade, all to Canadians’ detriment,” the duo wrote in the Globe and Mail.

Source:

Szakonyi, M. (2023, July 2). Shipping industry braced for extended strike at BC Ports. Journal of Commerce. https://www.joc.com/article/shipping-industry-braced-extended-strike-bc-ports_20230702.html