Striking International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada workers picket at a port entrance in Vancouver, B.C., Tuesday, July 4, 2023. British Columbia's ports are facing an uncertain future after the longshore workers union rejected a tentative mediated deal and resumed strike action that had been put to a temporary halt only last week. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
VANCOUVER – British Columbia port employers say the longshore workers union has given 72-hour notice of renewed strike action across the province starting on Saturday morning.
The British Columbia Maritime Employers Association says resuming strike action that had halted cargo movement for 13 days at the start of the month is “unnecessary and reckless.”
Members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada had returned to picket lines on Tuesday afternoon after the union rejected a tentative mediated deal.
That prompted federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan to declare the renewed strike action illegal, citing a Canada Industrial Relations Board ruling that the union had not given the required 72-hour notice.
The employers say the union’s notice now means the strike will officially resume around 9 a.m. Saturday.
They say the union was presented with a “fair and balanced deal” and that renewal of the strike means the union is “doubling down on holding the Canadian economy hostage.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 19, 2023.
