News

Canada’s Labor Minister on Tuesday took direct action to end coast-to-coast port closures by ordering binding arbitration in contract disputes between maritime employers and longshore workers, forcing ports to reopen.

Steve MacKinnon said in a statement that he has invoked authority under Canada’s labor code that will force longshore unions in British Columbia and Montreal and their respective employer groups to come to terms on new collective bargaining agreements with the aid of a government arbitrator.

In advance of the arbitration proceedings, MacKinnon also said his agency will order the reopening of ports in those jurisdictions, with previously expired longshore contracts being extended in the interim.

“I have directed the Canada Industrial Relations Board [CIRB] to order the resumption of all operations and functions at the ports, and to assist the parties by imposing final and binding arbitration,” MacKinnon said. “I have also directed the board to extend the term of the existing collective agreements until new ones are reached.”

MacKinnon’s move will end a nearly two-week work stoppage at the ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert after the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) locked out members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 after its vote for a strike.

The BCMEA tried to end the lockout this weekend through direct talks with Local 514 overseen by government mediators, but those talks did not result in a deal. Maritime employers there have offered Local 514 a 19.2% wage increase over four years, along with a one-time lump sum payment of C$21,000 and a boost to other existing benefits.

The BCMEA said in a statement Tuesday that it “intends to follow direction received from the CIRB and will inform member employers of operational updates as soon as possible.”

“We look forward to safely resuming operations across Canada’s West Coast ports,” the group said.

The coast-to-coast port closures have delayed the discharge and loading of ocean freight and forced Canada’s two main railroads to halt intermodal operations at the affected ports. But there does not appear to be any major disruptions in terms of a high number of anchored ships or severe backlogs at the ports.

Maersk said last week that vessels in its TP1 service to Canada’s west coast have remained at berth in Vancouver and Prince Rupert, with other scheduled vessels still en route to both ports. It said that vessels in the carrier’s Canada Express Service, which is jointly operated with CMA CGM, also remain en route to Montreal.

Hapag-Lloyd said in an advisory Tuesday that it has three ships at berth in Montreal currently, with two idling at anchorage in the Saint Lawrence River awaiting the port’s reopening. On the west coast, one ship in THE Alliance’s PN3 service remains at berth in Vancouver, with vessels in other services awaiting a berth. Another vessel in THE Alliance’s PN4 service is waiting outside of Prince Rupert for an available berth, the carrier said.

Details please refer to the JOC news.

Source:

Angell, M. (2024h, November 12). BC, Montreal ports set to reopen under orders from Canada’s Labor chief. Journal of Commerce. https://www.joc.com/article/bc-montreal-ports-set-to-reopen-under-orders-from-canadas-labor-chief-5792214

A growing number of container ships on Tuesday were waiting out the labor lockout at British Columbia ports in hopes of a speedy resolution. Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, the strike at marine terminals in Montreal is halting all rail service at that port.

Maersk said in an advisory that two ships in its TP1 service, the 6,350-TEU Marcos V and the 8,714-TEU San Felipe, are currently at anchorage at the ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert, respectively. A third ship, the 5,085-TEU Seattle Express, is still expected to call Vancouver’s Fraser Surrey terminal this week, with any change in its rotation contingent upon the duration of the port’s closure.

Container terminals at Vancouver and Prince Rupert were effectively shuttered after the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association locked out members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 following a strike vote by its members. The strike by longshore foremen began Monday morning.

The two sides remain at odds over terms of a new contract as well as the implementation of new technology at DP World’s Vancouver terminal. The prior contract expired in March 2023.

Management is still onsite at Vancouver terminals monitoring refrigerated containers, according to a person familiar with the issue, but truck gates and berth operations are halted. Vancouver is Canada’s largest container terminal.

The 12,726-TEU YM Target remains at berth at Vancouver’s Deltaport, with initial plans to wait out the work stoppage, the source added. Three other container ships are at anchorage outside of Vancouver, while the 4,250-TEU Cosco Auckland remains at berth at Prince Rupert.

The backlog of ships, though, may grow. The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority said Tuesday that seven container ships have requested an anchorage at the port.

While trying to maintain vessel schedules, Maersk is offering shippers relief from any charges associated with the work stoppage. It has suspended demurrage and export container detention across British Columbia ports, but Maersk said it is “still maintaining certain conditions for import detention.” The carrier said it will also open off-dock empty return locations for containers.

The work stoppage along Canada’s West Coast has also shut down rail operations. Canadian National Railway (CN) suspended westbound rail service to British Columbia ports, with Canadian Pacific-Kansas City (CPKC) also stopping acceptance of export and empty containers for British Columbia.

CN suspends Montreal service

The shutdown of Canada’s West Coast ports comes as longshore workers affiliated with the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 375 stage an indefinite strike against two marine terminals operated by Termont in Montreal.

The Termont strike is also forcing CN to suspend all rail service in and out of Montreal, including at the Racine and Cast terminals operated by Montreal Gateway Terminals, which are not affected by the strike, Hapag-Lloyd said in an advisory Tuesday. The suspension also includes interchange services with CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern in the Ohio Valley.

“This action is due to operational constraints and uncertainty arising from the ongoing renewal of the Montreal longshoremen collective agreement,” Hapag-Lloyd said. “As a result, CN will suspend and remove all capacity at their inland terminals for exports destined for Cast and Racine until further notice.”

Separately, Montreal’s Maritime Employers Association (MEA) started suspending salary guarantees for striking longshore workers Tuesday, saying it was necessary to “reduce the cumulative financial impact of repeated strikes and lower volumes at the Port of Montreal.”

Source:

Angell, M. (2024, November 5). BC container ports set for shutdown after foremen begin strike. Journal of Commerce. https://www.joc.com/article/bc-container-ports-set-for-shutdown-after-foremen-begin-strike-5785499

British Columbia’s container ports are set for an indefinite shut down this week as maritime employers planned to lock out longshore foremen after they began a strike Monday. While the lockout would not technically affect other longshore workers, uncertainty about the job actions taken by the foremen’s union will force marine terminals to shutter.

The British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) said in a statement Monday that the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) 514, representing about 730 longshore foremen, began its strike Monday morning at ports across the province. In response, the BCMEA said it would begin a lockout of Local 514 members with Monday’s evening shift and “continuing until further notice.”

Canadian labor law requires that employers see strike activity commence before issuing a formal lockout notice. That strike activity could take the form of an actual picket, a refusal to work an overtime shift, or similar job actions.

Canada’s Labor Minister Steve MacKinnon said in a statement Saturday that while federal mediators are available, “it is the responsibility of the parties to reach an agreement.”

The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority said that it expects disruptions at the Port of Vancouver beginning Monday. Vancouver is Canada’s largest container port.

The vessel impact appears limited so far as only one ship, the 12,726-TEU YM Target, is currently at berth in Vancouver, according to Sea-web a sister product of the Journal of Commerce within S&P Global. The 4,250-TEU Cosco Auckland is currently at berth at the Port of Prince Rupert, which would also be affected by a work stoppage. No container ships are sitting at Vancouver’s anchorages due to inclement weather in the region.

At least seven container ships are scheduled to call Vancouver through mid-November, Sea-web data shows. Three are expected to call Prince Rupert.

Canadian Pacific-Kansas City railroad said in a schedule update Monday that it’s no longer accepting export cargo for Vancouver due to the strike.

Union ‘extremely angry’ about lockout

Local 514 said in a statement last week that its members are “extremely angry” that the BCMEA planned to lock out its members. The union said its members were only planning to refuse overtime work or to implement new technology at the port, rather than a full-blown walkout. The union alleged the lockout is an “attempt to force the federal government to intervene in the dispute.”

But the BCMEA said in a Saturday statement that the lockout was a necessary precaution. Canadian labor law allows unions to change from one type of job action to another, creating a risk for a full-blown walkout, BCMEA said. Due to the heavy reliance on overtime shifts for cargo handling, a refusal to work overtime would severely disrupt port operations anyway, and terminals won’t request longshore labor without union supervision.

“Once a union commences strike action, the Canada Labor Code has no restrictions on the union subsequently changing the nature of its strike,” the BCMEA said in Saturday’s statement. “For example, a strike may start as an overtime ban and escalate — in minutes, hours or days — to a full-scale strike action without notice, where all workers walk off the job. This potential creates tremendous uncertainty and significant operational and safety challenges for operators.”

Local 514 has been working without a collective bargaining agreement since March 2023. The BCMEA is offering longshore foremen a 19.2% raise over four years, similar to the pay raise accepted by other ILWU longshore workers in Canada.

Source:

Angell, M. (2024f, November 4). BC container ports set for shutdown after foremen begin strike. Journal of Commerce. https://www.joc.com/article/bc-container-ports-set-for-shutdown-after-foremen-begin-strike-5785499

The Port of Montreal is warning that shippers may face diverted cargoes as an indefinite strike began Thursday at two marine terminals handling Mediterranean Shipping Co. container services, with over two dozen vessels facing an impact depending on the length of the current work stoppage.

The Viau and Maisonneuve marine terminals operated by Termont International closed to ship, rail and truck traffic Thursday morning as members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 375, which represents 1,200 dockworkers at Montreal, walked off the job.

Montreal Port Authority (MPA) Chief Executive Julie Gascon said in a statement Thursday that the shutdown “undermines the reliability and image of our logistics sector.” The open-ended strike follows a three-day, port-wide work stoppage at the start of October, a boycott of overtime work and another port-wide strike this past Sunday.

“This new work stoppage at the Viau and Maisonneuve terminals, at the very hub of our supply chain, can only have a deeply negative impact on thousands of local businesses, as well as on the economy of Quebec and Canada as a whole,” Gascon said. Montreal’s two other international container terminals remain open.

The strike at the two terminals will idle more than 1 million TEUs of Montreal’s total 2.3 million TEUs in terminal capacity.

The MPA said five ships with combined capacity of 18,000 TEUs are currently headed for the two terminals, with those ships carrying time-sensitive pharmaceutical and medical goods. Refrigerated containers holding such goods are already backlogged at the port due to the earlier labor actions, the MPA said, adding that some scheduled outbound rail service has been canceled due to the backlog.

Over the next three weeks, 26 ships are scheduled to call the two terminals, with the MPA saying that vessels “could change their port of destination” due to the strike.

“It is imperative that the parties reach an agreement,” Gascon said. “The need to reach an agreement quickly is acute and cannot be ignored.”

MSC, whose terminal arm jointly owns and operates Termont International, said in a customer advisory Wednesday that it is “working to minimize disruptions to our customers’ supply chains” and that “vessel impacts will be communicated as available and relevant.”

The Maritime Employers Association (MEA), which represents Montreal’s terminals and stevedores, said Thursday it “deplores” the strike. The MEA and Local 375 have been in protracted negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement since the last one expired at the end of 2023.

The MEA said in its statement that Local 375 has made a demand to change work hours without formal negotiations. It said that “schedules used on the different docks … called into question by the union in recent days, are enshrined in the collective agreement in force and cannot be used as a bargaining chip for a strike targeting a single operator, as is the case today.”

The CUPE did not respond to a request for comment.

Source:

Angell, M. (2024, October 31). Montreal warns of vessel diversions as strike against MSC Terminals Begins. Journal of Commerce. https://www.joc.com/article/montreal-warns-of-vessel-diversions-as-strike-against-msc-terminals-begins-5783311

Two marine terminals handling Mediterranean Shipping Co.’s Montreal container services face a work stoppage starting this week after longshore workers there voted to authorize an indefinite strike targeting nearly half of the port’s container capacity.

Termont International said Monday that Local 375 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) notified it that an “unlimited strike” will occur at Montreal’s Maisonneuve and Viau terminals starting Thursday at 11 AM local time.

The terminal operator urged shippers with cargo at both terminals to schedule pickups by Wednesday evening.

The strike at the two terminals will idle more than 1 million TEUs of Montreal’s total 2.3 million TEUs in terminal capacity. The port’s two other international container terminals, Racine and Cast, won’t be affected by the work stoppage.

Termont, a joint venture between MSC’s Terminal Investment Limited, SSA Marine and Canadian stevedore Logistec, primarily handles MSC’s trans-Atlantic and north-south services into Montreal. The services include the Montreal Express 1 from Italy, the Med Canadian service and the Canada Gulf Bridge service that spans Mexico and US Gulf ports.

MSC’s current schedule shows at least four of its ships — Anya, Celine, Nahara and England — scheduled to arrive at the Termont terminals by the end of the week. Another two ships in MSC services — Levina III and OOCL St. Lawrence — are scheduled to arrive at Montreal’s other terminals.

Local 375’s latest labor action represents a further escalation of pressure tactics against the Maritime Employers Association (MEA), which has yet to agree on a new contract covering the port’s 1,200 longshore workers. Local 375 also started an ongoing boycott of overtime work at the port and held a three-day work stoppage at the Viau and Maisonneuve terminals at the start of October. This past Sunday, Local 375 conducted a one-day, port-wide strike at Montreal.

Source:

Angell, M. (2024d, October 29). Montreal dockworkers target MSC’s terminals for strike this week. Journal of Commerce. https://www.joc.com/article/montreal-dockworkers-target-mscs-terminals-for-strike-this-week-5781453