Close X
Wednesday, November 6, 2024
ADVT 
National

B.C. ports shuttered as lockout takes hold in latest labour dispute

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 05 Nov, 2024 11:53 AM
  • B.C. ports shuttered as lockout takes hold in latest labour dispute

One of Canada's most vital trade arteries is cut off as employers at most of British Columbia's ports lock out their workers in a dispute involving about 700 unionized foremen. 

The BC Maritime Employers Association says it defensively locked out members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 after the union began strike activity yesterday.

However, union president Frank Morena says the employers grossly overreacted to the union's original plan for an overtime ban, adding that its negotiators are ready to re-engage in talks at any time.

Canadian political and business leaders have expressed concern with another work stoppage at the ports, after job action from the big railways earlier this year and a 13-day strike in a separate labour dispute last year.

The Greater Vancouver Board of Trade says it is relaunching its Port Shutdown Calculator, a tool to illustrate the economic damage caused by the labour dispute and introduced during the job action last year. 

Board president Bridgitte Anderson says the latest port shutdown will disrupt $800 million worth of goods daily, with every hour of the closure fuelling inflation.

"This shutdown is the latest in a long line of highly damaging labour disputes that have hurt Canada’s economy and international reputation," Anderson says.

"Through the Port Shutdown Calculator, we want to demonstrate the profound and escalating impact of this labour dispute." 

The employers and the workers represented by Local 514 have been without a contract since March 2023.

MORE National ARTICLES

New regulations allow Canada Post to ship prohibited firearms returned in gun buyback

New regulations allow Canada Post to ship prohibited firearms returned in gun buyback
The federal government is giving Canada Post the ability to store and transport prohibited firearms in new regulations that bring the retail gun buyback program one step closer to beginning. An order-in-council dated Oct. 16 allows for prohibited assault-style firearms to be removed from safes at firearms retailers, transported and ultimately destroyed. 

New regulations allow Canada Post to ship prohibited firearms returned in gun buyback

Joly faces calls for probe in death of woman Canada refused to repatriate from Syria

Joly faces calls for probe in death of woman Canada refused to repatriate from Syria
Advocates want Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly to call an impartial investigation into the death of a Canadian woman the federal government refused to repatriate from a Syrian detention camp. In a letter to Joly, Sen. Kim Pate and human rights activist Alex Neve say the Quebec woman died unexpectedly just over a week ago in Turkey.

Joly faces calls for probe in death of woman Canada refused to repatriate from Syria

Canadian consensus on immigration under threat, but not gone: immigration minister

Canadian consensus on immigration under threat, but not gone: immigration minister
Immigration Minister Marc Miller says Canada's long-held consensus on immigration is under threat, but has not disappeared. On Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced plans to slash Canada's immigration targets by 20 per cent next year and admitted his government did not get the balance right after the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Canadian consensus on immigration under threat, but not gone: immigration minister

Majority of Canadians would vote for Kamala Harris in U.S. election: poll

Majority of Canadians would vote for Kamala Harris in U.S. election: poll
If Canadians could vote in the U.S. election, a majority would choose to send Kamala Harris to the White House. In a new survey from polling firm Leger, 64 per cent of Canadian respondents said if they could cast a ballot, they’d put their support behind vice-president Harris while 21 per cent would support former president Donald Trump. Fifteen per cent weren't sure what they would do. 

Majority of Canadians would vote for Kamala Harris in U.S. election: poll

Halloween safety plan key: Coquitlam RCMP

Halloween safety plan key: Coquitlam RCMP
Police in Coquitlam are urging people to have a plan as Halloween approaches to ensure the safety of children and pedestrians. Mounties say trick-or-treating often leads to increased number of pedestrians on the roadways, and people should make sure their costumes are visible in the dark.

Halloween safety plan key: Coquitlam RCMP

Mail-in ballot figures coming for each B.C. riding, may make election outcome clearer

Mail-in ballot figures coming for each B.C. riding, may make election outcome clearer
Elections BC is expected to provide a breakdown today of the number of uncounted mail-in and absentee ballots in each of British Columbia's 93 ridings, potentially making clearer the outcome of the weekend's nail-biting vote. There are about 65,000 of the ballots to count between tomorrow and Monday, which could solidify results from election night, or may even flip some ridings. 

Mail-in ballot figures coming for each B.C. riding, may make election outcome clearer