Close X
Wednesday, November 20, 2024
ADVT 
National

Union vote begins on B.C. port deal that could end months-long dispute

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 03 Aug, 2023 10:53 AM
  • Union vote begins on B.C. port deal that could end months-long dispute

A union vote among British Columbia port workers is underway to determine the fate of a deal with employers that could bring their long-running industrial dispute to an end.

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada is holding its vote from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. today and tomorrow to decide whether to ratify the agreement recommended by negotiators.

Rejection would raise the prospect of more federal involvement in the case, with the Canada Industrial Relations Board directed to impose a deal or binding arbitration on both sides if a negotiated resolution can't be reached.

The dispute shut down more than 30 port terminals and other sites for 13 days in July.

Labour lawyer Don Eady says workers in Canada across multiple sectors are facing the dual threat of wage increases not keeping up with inflation, as well as the erosion of jobs caused by automation and the use of contractors.

Eady, who is a partner at Toronto-based firm Paliare Roland, says port workers have to decide if the language in the new deal addresses those issues adequately for members, and it is within their legal rights to reject the agreement because it is ultimately another step toward a settlement under the collective bargaining system.

The union in the port dispute had voted down a previous agreement a week ago in another full membership vote, but no strike action has been taken since a brief stoppage on July 18.

MORE National ARTICLES

Global meeting in B.C. looks at ocean conservation

Global meeting in B.C. looks at ocean conservation
Fisheries and Oceans Minister Joyce Murray and Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault are both to attend the IMPAC5 conference, joining thousands of delegates from 123 countries. Conference sessions begin Saturday and will last through the week.

Global meeting in B.C. looks at ocean conservation

Extreme cold grips much of Eastern Canada

Extreme cold grips much of Eastern Canada
In scores of cities and towns, government and private agencies were scrambling to provide shelter for vulnerable people as the wind was expected to make the temperature feel like -40 C to -50 C in many areas.

Extreme cold grips much of Eastern Canada

Chinatown graffiti vandal arrested: VPD

Chinatown graffiti vandal arrested: VPD
Officers patrolling the neighbourhood arrested the vandal – a man in his 60s – Wednesday afternoon, after he allegedly wrote graffiti on a building near Abbott and West Pender Street, then tagged a sign near Main and Keefer Street. 

Chinatown graffiti vandal arrested: VPD

Tom Clark to be Canada's envoy in New York City

Tom Clark to be Canada's envoy in New York City
Clark will be Canada's consul general in New York, putting him in charge of Ottawa's efforts to sow cultural and economic ties in the Big Apple, as well as in neighboring American states and in Bermuda.

Tom Clark to be Canada's envoy in New York City

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