Union says it will challenge Ottawa’s intervention in B.C. port work stoppages

By Rosa Saba, The Canadian Press on November 12, 2024.

Steve MacKinnon, Minister of Labour and Seniors rises during Question Period in Ottawa, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

The union representing locked-out port workers in British Columbia says it plans to challenge the federal government’s intervention in the ongoing labour dispute.

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Ship & Dock Foremen Local 514 called the government’s move an insult to the union and to workers’ bargaining rights.

Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon intervened Tuesday to end work stoppages at ports in both British Columbia and Montreal, directing the Canada Industrial Relations Board to order the resumption of all operations and move the talks to binding arbitration.

Port workers in British Columbia were locked out last week amid a dispute involving more than 700 longshore supervisors, while the Maritime Employers Association locked out 1,200 longshore workers at the Port of Montreal on Sunday night.

The B.C. union’s announcement comes after Teamsters Canada launched a challenge of Ottawa’s intervention in a countrywide work stoppage on Canada’s two biggest railways.

Labour experts have said government intervention undermines workers’ rights, while business groups have been calling for Ottawa to step in as the work stoppages disrupt supply chains.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.