Gantry cranes sit idle as a container ship is docked at port during a work stoppage, in Vancouver, on Wednesday, July 19, 2023.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
VANCOUVER – A union local for B.C. port workers says that a tentative agreement has been reached between a union bargaining committee and employers.
A statement on the website of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada Local 502 says that a tentative agreement has been reached with the BC Maritime Employers Association.
Rick Hurtubise, president of ILWU Local 502, says in the statement that an “emergency contract caucus” will be held on Friday to vote on whether to send the tentative agreement to the full union membership for ratification.
Hurtubise says Local 502 will call a meeting to present the package to its members if the vote passes.
There was no mention of a new tentative agreement on either the BCMEA’s website or the union’s main website.
The development is the latest in a turbulent week that saw the union voting down a federal mediator’s terms, the union issuing but quickly rescinding a new 72-hour strike notice, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau convening the federal incident response group.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 20, 2023.
