Close X
Tuesday, November 19, 2024
ADVT 
National

Minister launches review of B.C. port strike case to uncover 'structural issues'

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 09 Aug, 2023 01:50 PM
  • Minister launches review of B.C. port strike case to uncover 'structural issues'

Federal Labour Minister Seamus O'Regan is launching an examination of the recently resolved British Columbia port dispute to see if "structural issues" in negotiations led to a 13-day work stoppage.

In a written statement released through social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, O'Regan says officials will immediately begin by reviewing reports on previous, similar disputes.

O'Regan says the goal is to create long-term solutions leading to "a harmonious working environment" between unions and employers in future collective bargaining.

Labour experts say the federal government may have limited options to prevent future stoppages similar to the July 1 to July 13 B.C. port strike that froze movements of cargo worth billions of dollars. 

University of Manitoba associate professor of Labour Studies David Camfield says workers' right to strike in Canada is already "very narrowly circumscribed," with only unionized workers eligible to take job action at a specific time after a collective agreement has expired.

Camfield says a push by the government to further limit strike action during collective negotiations — an act protected by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms — may end up triggering legal challenges and getting bogged down in courts.

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada, representing about 7,400 workers, said last Friday that its members voted almost 75 per cent in favour of ratifying a new deal.

Terms of the deal ratified by both the union and the BC Maritime Employers Association include a commitment by employers to train workers to perform maintenance on new equipment.

Contracting out maintenance work to third parties had been one of the most contentious issues during the dispute.

The four-year agreement also contains several terms about workers' compensation, including boosts to hourly wages to a base rate of $57.51 by 2026.

There are also increases in the "Modernization and Mechanization retirement lump sum," bringing that payout to $96,250 in 2026 for eligible retirees, over and above normal pension entitlements.

 

MORE National ARTICLES

Test requirement extended for travel from China

Test requirement extended for travel from China
The government says it's concerned about reports of a dramatic increase in COVID-19 cases in China, and the lack of data available from China about potential variants that could be spreading through the country.

Test requirement extended for travel from China

Jan. home sales down 55% from year earlier: REBGV

Jan. home sales down 55% from year earlier: REBGV
The board says sales for the month totalled 1,022, a 55 per cent drop from the prior January. The number of homes that changed hands last month was also 42.9 per cent below the 10-year January sales average.    

Jan. home sales down 55% from year earlier: REBGV

Man acquitted over 'automatism' stabbing of wife

Man acquitted over 'automatism' stabbing of wife
In his decision, Justice Warren Milman outlines Perignon's difficulties with extreme pain from two separate motor vehicle accidents, leading to an opioid prescription described in the judgment as "dangerously high" and above a level that would be "fatal for someone naive to opioids."    

Man acquitted over 'automatism' stabbing of wife

Groundhog Day: Fred la Marmotte dead

Groundhog Day: Fred la Marmotte dead
According to folklore, if a groundhog sees its shadow on Groundhog Day, winter will drag on. However, if it doesn't spot its shadow, spring-like weather will soon arrive. Folklorists say the Groundhog Day ritual may have something to do with Feb. 2 landing midway between winter solstice and spring equinox, but no one knows for sure.   

Groundhog Day: Fred la Marmotte dead

Family reacts as Mounties face Manslaughter charge

Family reacts as Mounties face Manslaughter charge
The civil liberties association statement says although the independent review in 2019 found "reasonable grounds" to believe two officers may have committed offences related to use of force, and three others may have obstructed justice, the Crown was not handed a final report until 2020, and charge approval took nearly three more years.

Family reacts as Mounties face Manslaughter charge

Manslaughter charge against two B.C. RCMP officers

Manslaughter charge against two B.C. RCMP officers
Sgt. Jon Eusebio Cruz, and constables Arthur Dalman and Clarence MacDonald are accused of attempting to obstruct justice. RCMP said at the time of the arrest that 35-year-old Arthur Dale Culver appeared to have trouble breathing before he died in while in police custody.

Manslaughter charge against two B.C. RCMP officers