Canada’s west coast ports are major outlets for the country’s resource exports, including potash, coal, forestry products, pork and beef. A 13-day strike last year disrupted more than C$6 billion in trade at Vancouver and Port Rupert.

The British Columbia Maritime Employers Association said the proposed lockout of more than 700 foremen was preventative as the unit of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union representing them had already issued a 72-hour strike notice.

If the union withdraws the strike notice, Monday’s lockout will not go ahead, the association said in a statement.

The two sides are in protracted talks over a labour deal and have been negotiating with the help of a federal mediator. The stoppage would also affect the port of Prince Rupert.

“In anticipation of escalating and unpredictable strike action, the BCMEA has made a decision to take defensive action in the form of a coastwide lockout,” it said in a statement.

“It will not affect longshoring operations on grain vessels or cruise operations.”

The association said the lockout notice has been issued in order to “facilitate a safe and orderly wind down of operations” in anticipation of a strike.

ILWU local 514 president Frank Morena said in a statement that it had only planned “limited job action” such as refusing overtime and accepting some technological changes, Canadian Press reported.

The impasse comes after a long-simmering dispute over pay and working conditions, including concerns over automation, with each side accusing the other of bargaining in bad faith.

The Port of Montreal, where workers are represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees, saw the start on Thursday of a strike at two terminals operated by Termont, which handle 40% of the port’s container traffic, but only 15% of its cargo.

Grain and other exports from the west coast were hit in August by a labor dispute at Canada’s two major railways, which the federal government ended by imposing binding arbitration.

The government has resisted calls to interfere in collective bargaining in other disputes, other than offering mediation.

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The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU Canada), which represents about 7,400 longshore workers at various Vancouver and Prince Rupert port facilities, said Tuesday afternoon its longshore caucus had voted to reject terms of settlement proposed last week by federal mediator Peter Simpson’s team.

Instead, ILWU Canada said, its membership “will be back on the picket line for a fair and negotiated collective agreement” as of 4:30 p.m. PT.

Service for bulk grain vessels at West Coast ports is exempt from the work stoppage under Canada’s Labour Code.

Several farmer and ag industry groups had been publicly calling for federal action to end the strike, however, as containerized pulse crops, perishables such as meat and produce, fertilizer and other goods face potential delays.

The union caucus “does not believe the recommendations had the ability to protect our jobs now or into the future,” the union said Tuesday.

Work was to resume at B.C. ports last Thursday evening after the port management group, the B.C. Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA), said a tentative agreement had been reached and the longshore workers’ 13-day strike would end.

Simpson and his team had been directed by federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan to draft terms for an agreement to take to the union and management for their review — an option that was open to O’Regan under the Canada Labour Code.

However, ILWU Canada had not said last Thursday whether it would put the mediator’s proposed deal to a ratification vote.

Rather, it said Tuesday, with the “record profits” BCMEA member firms have collected in recent years, “the employers have not addressed the cost-of-living issues that our workers have faced over the last couple of years as all workers have.”

Also, the mediator’s proposal called for a collective agreement with a four-year term, which ILWU Canada said “with today’s uncertain times, is far too long. We must be able to readdress the uncertainty in the world’s financial markets for our members.”

BCMEA, in a separate statement Tuesday, said ILWU’s “internal caucus leadership rejected the tentative agreement, before it was even taken to a vote of the full union membership.”

The employer group said the proposed “fair and comprehensive package could not satisfy some of (ILWU’s) internal caucus leadership, and in rejecting this tentative agreement, ILWU leadership is choosing to further harm Canada’s economy, international reputation and most importantly, to Canadians, their livelihoods and all those that rely on a stable supply chain.”

BCMEA said the proposal had called for “considerable hikes in wages and benefits” that are “generally above the established norm of recent private and public sector union settlements in British Columbia and Canada.”

The tentative deal had also included “specific provisions that addressed the union’s concern regarding ‘contracting out’ work and measures to improve training, recruitment and retention of ILWU trades workers now and in the future,” the employer association said.

Among those provisions, BCMEA said, the deal called for “benefit coverage for all casual trades workers, a tool allowance, and a commitment to increase apprentices in the industry by 15 per cent.”

A statement was not yet available early Tuesday evening from O’Regan or Transport Minister Omar Alghabra, both of whom were attending the Atlantic Growth Strategy Leadership Committee meeting with Atlantic Canada’s premiers Tuesday in Moncton. — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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Roughly a quarter of all Canadian pea exports, a third of the lentils, and all the chickpeas typically move by container, with a strike by British Columbia port workers in early July hindering some movement.

That labour stoppage was resolved after 13 days, and the Port of Vancouver announced that it was “actively working to clear the backlog of ships waiting to enter (the port) caused by the recent labour strike.”

Canada has exported 1.972 million tonnes of lentils by the end of May, with Turkey the top destination at 562,500 tonnes followed by India at 501,000 tonnes, according to Statistics Canada data. That compares with 1.300 tonnes of lentil exports through May of the previous crop year.

Pea exports of 2.312 million tonnes are up by 42 per cent compared to the same time the previous year, with China accounting for nearly 1.3 million tonnes of the total. Other major importers of Canadian peas include Bangladesh, the U.S. and Pakistan.

Canada has exported 203,300 tonnes of chickpeas through the 2022-23 crop year-to-date, with the U.S. the top destination, followed by Turkey. The exports through May were well above the 136,000 tonnes that moved through 10 months the previous year.

Large green lentils are currently trading in the 56-58 cents/lb. range in Western Canada, according to Prairie Ag Hotwire data, with new-crop bids as high as 55 cents. Old-crop red lentils top out at 34 cents/lb., with the new crop only slightly lower at 33 cents.

Green peas delivered to the elevator are trading at roughly $13-$14 per bushel, with yellow peas in the $8.75-$12.80 per bushel area. New-crop pricing for the two crops top out at $13.80 and $10 per bushel respectively.

Large-calibre Kabuli chickpeas are currently trading at around 44 to 45 cents/lb., according to Prairie Ag Hotwire, with new-crop bids topping out at 44 cents/lb.

— Phil Franz-Warkentin is an associate editor/analyst with MarketsFarm in Winnipeg.

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The B.C. Maritime Employers Association said in a release Thursday morning it had reached a tentative pact with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU Canada) on a new four-year collective agreement “that recognizes the skills and efforts of B.C.’s waterfront workforce.”

The deal ending a 13-day strike came after federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan on Tuesday night tasked federally appointed mediators with drafting terms for a new agreement based on progress made in talks to date.

O’Regan had set a deadline of Thursday evening for the union and management to decide whether the mediator’s terms were acceptable.

He and federal Transport Minister Omar Alghabra, in a joint statement Thursday, said the ILWU and BCMEA are now “finalizing details for the resumption of work at the ports.”

BCMEA said Thursday morning it’s “committed to working closely with ILWU Canada and their locals and supply chain partners to safely resume operations as soon as possible.”

Thanking federal mediator Peter Simpson and his team as well as O’Regan for their help in reaching the tentative deal, the employer group said it “recognizes and regrets the significant impact this labour disruption has had on the economy, businesses, workers, customers and ultimately, all Canadians.”

Parties at Vancouver and Prince Rupert now “must collectively work together to not only restore cargo operations as quickly and safely as possible but to also rebuild the reputation of Canada’s largest gateway and ensure supply chain stability and resilience for the future,” BCMEA said.

O’Regan and Alghabra, in their statement Thursday, concurred that the scale of the disruption at the West Coast has been “significant” and “has shown just how important the relationship between industry and labour is to our national interest. Our supply chains and our economy depend on it.”

Service for bulk grain vessels and cruise ships at B.C.’s ports was exempt from this work stoppage. However, several farmer and ag industry groups had publicly called for federal action to end the strike, as containerized pulse crops, perishables such as meat and produce, fertilizer and other goods were potentially at risk from delays.

Past that, Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters (CME) said in a separate release Thursday the strike “has caused severe backlogs that will take weeks to process. The damage to manufacturing supply chains is significant, as production slowed in the lead-up to the strike and will take even more time to get back up and running.”

CME said it’s been estimated that a day of a port shutdown takes up to a week to make up, “meaning it will take months for the sector to recover.”

O’Regan and Alghabra emphasized Thursday that “deals like this, made between parties at the collective bargaining table…are the best way to preserve the long-term stability of Canada’s economy” and “we do not want to be back here again.” — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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In a statement at about 9:30 CT Tuesday evening, Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan said he had asked the senior federal mediator in the dispute to supply him with terms of a recommended settlement within 24 hours.

O’Regan said he will then forward those terms to both the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU Canada) and the B.C. Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA). The two parties then have 24 hours to decide “whether or not to recommend ratification of the terms to their principals.”

The Canada Labour Code allows for a federally appointed mediator — at the request of the parties, or of the labour minister — to make recommendations for settlement of a dispute or an outstanding difference between parties in labour talks.

In this specific case, O’Regan said Tuesday, “as a result of the hard work by the parties at the bargaining table, there is a good deal within reach — one that would work for both the employer and the union.”

In the wake of 11 days’ striking at West Coast ports, O’Regan said he’s decided “the difference between the employer’s and the union’s positions is not sufficient to justify a continued work stoppage.”

The scale of the disruption caused so far by the strike “shows how important the relationship between the BCMEA and the ILWU is to our national interest,” he added. “We cannot allow this work stoppage to persist and risk further damage to the relationship between these parties.”

Despite O’Regan’s plan, Manitoba farm organization Keystone Agricultural Producers and the Manitoba Pork Council, in a joint statement Wednesday, called instead for an immediate end to the supply chain disruptions caused by the strike.

“We appreciate Minister O’Regan’s directive to the federal mediator, but in contrast to the back-to-work legislation that was brought forward to address the Port of Montreal strike in 2021, the federal government has refused to take direct action that would end the strike and the associated impacts on our supply chain,” KAP general manager Brenna Mahoney said in a release.

About 7,400 B.C. longshore workers represented by ILWU Canada went on strike July 1 after serving the BCMEA with the required 72 hours’ notice. Their previous collective agreement expired March 31 and talks had been underway since that time between the parties with federal mediators.

While the federal Labour Code requires that striking longshore workers continue to handle loading of bulk grain vessels, the current West Coast strike has the potential to stall Canada’s exports of containerized pulse crops, fresh pork, fertilizer and other goods.

In a statement earlier Tuesday the BCMEA, whose members include 49 B.C. waterfront employers and terminal operators, estimated the value of disrupted cargo since July 1 at about $8.6 billion.

The association cited estimates from Royal Bank that 63,000 shipping containers were already impacted, with 13 vessels to arrive in coming days and 37 due by month-end — by which time the value of backlogged goods would touch $11.7 billion, which in turn would require “over three weeks of clearance, barring any new arrivals.”

The association also noted provincial leaders including Ontario’s Doug Ford, Saskatchewan’s Scott Moe and Alberta’s Danielle Smith have called for an end to the longshore workers’ job action.

Neither O’Regan nor Transport Minister Omar Alghabra have mentioned back-to-work legislation as an option, which currently would involve recalling Parliament off its summer break.

Shortly before the strike, the ILWU said outstanding issues included protection for its members against job losses caused by contracting-out and port automation, and against “record-high inflation and skyrocketing cost of living.” — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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Some 7,500 dock workers represented by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU Canada) walked off on July 1 after failing to agree a new wage deal with the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA).

The union says the BCMEA is refusing to give a fair pay rise despite making billions of dollars in profits in recent years.

The strike has upended operations at two of Canada’s three busiest ports, the Port of Vancouver and Port of Prince Rupert — key gateways for exporting the country’s natural resources and commodities and bringing in raw materials.

READ MORE: Pork sector calls for essential service status amid B.C. port strike

Nutrien blamed the work stoppage at the Port of Vancouver for lowering export capacity at its Cory potash mine in Saskatchewan and warned of further hits to production if the strike is prolonged.

The strike could cause more supply chain disruptions and fuel inflation, economists have warned, just as the central bank is trying to cool the economy. The Bank of Canada is widely expected to raise its key interest rate on Wednesday by 25 basis points, to five per cent.

The estimated cost from the 12-day strike is pegged at about $6 billion, based on industry body Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters’ calculation of about $500 million in disrupted trade per day.

The two parties met in person for the first time in more than a week on Monday night, a government source not authorized to speak on the record said.

They were joined by Senator Hassan Yussuf, a former president of the Canadian Labour Congress who earlier this spring helped negotiate an end to Canada’s largest public sector strike ever, the source said.

In statements late Monday, both sides blamed each other for failing to reach a new deal. The association said its proposals to addresses ILWU Canada’s demand to expand the union’s jurisdiction over regular maintenance work on terminals were rejected by the union.

The workers and their employers had walked away from the negotiating table last week, but resumed talks on Saturday.

— Reporting by Ismail Shakil and Steve Scherer in Ottawa; additional reporting by Arshreet Singh.

CORRECTION FROM SOURCE, July 11: Today is the strike’s 11th day, not 12th as reported in an earlier version of this article. We regret the error.

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The B.C. Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA), in a statement Monday, said it’s “of the view that a continuation of bargaining at this time is not going to produce a collective agreement” with its longshore workers’ union, which went on strike Saturday morning.

While any prolonged strike at the West Coast could snarl many of Canada’s supply chains, longshore work at port grain terminals at Vancouver and Prince Rupert is not affected. The Canada Labour Code requires that loading or movement of grain vessels continue during any such work stoppage. The association and workers’ union also confirmed last Friday that service to cruise ships at the West Coast would not be affected.

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU Canada), in a separate statement Tuesday, said it received a message Monday from federal mediators that the BCMEA had “walked away from the table.”

The BCMEA, which represents 49 employers at B.C.’s waterfront, such as ship owners and agents, stevedores and container and cruise ship terminal operators, said Monday it “has gone as far as possible on core issues” in talks, but the union “seems to have entrenched their positions.”

The ILWU and BCMEA had been in talks with the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) since March 28.

The employers’ group said Monday the union “is attempting to aggressively expand their scope and re-define Regular Maintenance Work far beyond what is set out in the industry-wide agreement, which has been legally well established for decades.”

Under their collective agreement, which expired March 31, the union “exclusively supplies the labour force” but “has been consistently unable to fulfill the trades work they have jurisdiction over.”

Also, the BCMEA described the union’s proposals for compensation as “unreasonable, and well outside the established norm of union settlements in Canada.”

ILWU Canada, in a separate statement Monday, said the BCMEA “has accused the union of trying to expand its scope of work beyond regular maintenance.” Rather, the union said, it “has been raising the issue of the rampant contracting out of our maintenance work for years” and its focus in bargaining “has been to stop the erosion of jurisdiction and the extensive use of contractors.”

As for compensation, the union said it “did not take the position that gorging on massive profits was unreasonable, but we did take the position that it is reasonable for the workers that helped to achieve those record profits in the first place to have a fair and equitable share of them.”

The union said it also “hope(s) that the association is not hiding behind the threat of back-to-work legislation and binding arbitration to avoid engaging in bargaining with the union.”

Federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan, in a separate tweet Tuesday, said he “encourage(s) both parties to immediately return to the bargaining table and remain there until a deal is reached.”

Collective bargaining, he said, “is hard work but it’s how the best, most resilient deals are made.” — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU Canada) on Wednesday morning served the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) with 72 hours’ strike notice, which would see strike action begin Saturday at 8 a.m. PT.

The BCMEA — which represents 49 employers at B.C.’s waterfront, such as ship owners and agents, stevedores and container and cruise ship terminal operators — emphasized in its statement Wednesday that any work stoppage “will not impact employees required to service grain vessels” as per the Canada Labour Code.

Under section 87.7 (1) of the Code, longshore workers “shall continue to provide the services they normally provide to ensure the tie-up, let-go and loading of grain vessels at licensed terminal and transfer elevators, and the movement of the grain vessels in and out of a port.”

Exports of grains, oilseeds and related byproducts through licensed elevators at Vancouver and Prince Rupert totalled 31.51 million tonnes in 2020-21, and were cut by drought to 17.55 million tonnes in 2021-22.

The ILWU, in a separate statement Wednesday, said its bargaining committee “has run out options at the bargaining table because the BCMEA and their member employers have refused to negotiate on the main issues.”

Those issues, the union said, include protection for its members against job losses caused by contracting-out and port automation, and against “record-high inflation and skyrocketing cost of living.”

Port employers, the union said, “have repaid our hard work and dedication with demands for major concessions. Their only objective is to take away rights and conditions from longshore workers after having gorged themselves on record profits during the pandemic.”

The ILWU and BCMEA have been in talks with the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) since March 28, when the union filed a notice of dispute, the BCMEA said.

The employer association said it has since put forward “multiple proposals and positions in good faith, with the objective of making progress and achieving a fair deal at the table.” Talks are still scheduled to continue between the parties with FMCS on Thursday, BCMEA added.

The BCMEA said it’s also “open to any solution that brings both parties to a balanced agreement.” For one, it proposed binding mediation and arbitration, but added that the ILWU has so far “declined” that proposal.

Federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan and Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said in a separate statement Wednesday that the FMCS will “keep supporting negotiations until an agreement is reached.”

All parties, the ministers said, understand “what is at stake for Canadians and our supply chains,” adding that port facilities and workers “are responsible for moving goods both nationally and internationally, and industries and consumers would feel the effects of a work stoppage.”

The ministers, in their statement, did not mention back-to-work legislation as an option to prevent a strike, saying instead that they “support the collective bargaining process because the best deals are made at the bargaining table.” The House of Commons adjourned for the summer on Wednesday last week.

The ministers said they “strongly encourage the parties to get back to the bargaining table and work together to reach an agreement.”

The ILWU’s previous contract dispute with port employers ended in a deal on May 30, 2019 following a BCMEA lockout that lasted just a few hours. –– Glacier FarmMedia Network

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The Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association issued a strongly worded press release on Tuesday after striking picketers targeted Vancouver’s Cascadia grain terminal, co-owned by Viterra and Richardson International.

“A strike is one thing, but to intentionally target a port that is critical to the lives of grain farmers and to the entire Canadian economy is the height of reckless irresponsibility,” association president Gunter Jochum said.

Other commodity groups across the country had more measured responses to PSAC’s strike, which began April 19. On the day workers walked off the job, Keystone Agricultural Producers (KAP) president Jill Verwey weighed in with her organization’s concerns.

“KAP respects the rights of Canadian workers to collective action,” she said in an April 19 press release. “However, this strike could negatively impact grain shipments, resulting in backlogs and restricted cash flow for farmers, as well as increased demurrage costs for grain companies. Restrictions in cash flow could hamper a farmer’s ability to market their remaining 2022 crop as well as their ability to purchase inputs for the 2023 crop year.”

KAP expressed their concerns in writing to both the government of Canada and PSAC prior to the strike action and called on both to make sure adequate contingencies were in place to minimize negative impacts to the grain handling system.

The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) also weighed in, arguing that the supply chain has yet to fully recover from the impacts of COVID-19 and that a prolonged strike could be a major blow to producers.

“Delayed inspections will cause backlogs at ports. Every day a ship must wait means demurrage charges to grain companies, and these costs always make their way to the farmer,” APAS president Ian Boxall said.

To date, shipping hasn’t been dramatically affected. According to Mark Hemmes, president of Quorum Corporation (Canada’s Grain Monitor), while picketing at Cascadia was an inconvenience, it was limited to that location, only lasted a few hours and the impact was not significant.

“It’s the only terminal on the south shore where the entrance to the terminal property is outside the port security gates,” Hemmes said.

Terminals in Thunder Bay and Prince Rupert are also within port security gates, he added, and while some picketers have port passes, he says it’s unlikely they would use them for picketing.

Inspection impacts

However, it’s not just picketing that’s at issue. Sixty-five per cent of Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) staff are on strike right now, and that includes most of the grain inspectors.

“There are some inspection staff that are not in a strike position, but those are limited to some managers in the regions and inspection specialists across the country,” said CGC spokesperson Rémi Gosselin. “So that means that the CGC’s provision of official inspection and certification of grain exports is significantly impacted.”

To minimize the impacts on grain producers, companies and grain exports in general, the CGC has developed contingency plans allowing inspection services to continue. “We’ve allowed grain companies to temporarily collect samples on our behalf and then provide those to us so that we can provide final inspections and certification on grain shipments so that exports meet importing countries requirements,” Gosselin said.

According to Hemmes, those provisions appear to be working.

“So far, the ship-loading stats don’t show anything in the way of delays to vessel departures or loading,” he said. “The CGC contingent that is managing the inspections seems to be keeping up, and between the terminals and the CGC, they have procedures in place that ensure inspection protocols are being maintained.”

However, Hemmes said it’s a heavy burden to bear for those doing the inspections. “Those managers are going to need a holiday when this is done,” he said.

Jochum said he’s pleased with the work the CGC has done to ensure grain continues to move, but he fears that if the strike is prolonged, cracks could begin to show.

Time for a third party?

The wheat growers’ association has long argued that the Canada Grain Act should authorize third-party weighing and inspection of vessels leaving Canadian waters. Jochum said this strike is a good time to revive the issue and could help insulate the supply chain from future disruptions.

The call for third-party inspectors to replace federal inspectors is a hotly debated topic. The issue was raised a number of times during the consultation surrounding the current Canada Grain Act review.

The What We Heard: Canada Grain Act Review Consultations report, released in 2021, said, “While it was unanimous that the CGC should continue to have a role in the setting of quality standards, approximately half of respondents that discussed outward inspection were in favour of the CGC accrediting and overseeing third-party inspection companies rather than performing inspections directly.”

The wheat growers say that third-party inspectors are already in place to meet the demands of overseas customers, and there is therefore no need to duplicate those services.

The other side of the coin notes that the CGC stamp of approval is part of why Canadian grain quality has an excellent reputation.

But Jochum is concerned that if overworked managers are unable to keep up in the face of a prolonged strike, that reputation could be tarnished anyway.

“The problem is they are swamped. They are working seven days a week,” he said. “If this strike goes on for any length of time, eventually someone is going to drop the ball along the way.”

— Don Norman reports for the Manitoba Co-operator from Winnipeg.

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Canada has announced a slew of measures to isolate Russia, including imposing sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin, closing Canadian airspace to Russian planes, banning oil imports and forbidding Canadian financial institutions from dealing with the Russian central bank, acting in tandem with other Western countries.

“Today, we are taking steps to close Canadian waters and ports to Russian-owned or registered ships,” Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said.

Alghabra said while the number of Russian ships entering Canadian waters and ports is “small,” there will still be an impact, especially with other countries doing the same.

Russia represents less than two per cent of Port of Montreal’s annual containerized volumes, and the ban will have little commercial impact, a spokesperson for that port authority said.

Port of Vancouver, Canada’s busiest, said the number of Russian-flagged vessels calling there is minimal. In the past, those that have traded in crude oil, canola oil and copper concentrates, a spokesperson said.

Canada is tracking three Russian-flagged vessels off the East Coast, one of which is a cargo vessel, a government official told Reuters.

Canada is also scrutinizing holdings of all Russian oligarchs and Russian companies in the country, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland told reporters on Tuesday. “We are reviewing them and everything is on the table,” she added.

Canada is sending 1,600 bulletproof vests and almost 400,000 meal rations to Ukraine.

Canada imported $2.14 billion worth of goods from Russia in 2021, Statistics Canada data showed, with metals and minerals among the most valuable categories.

— Reporting for Reuters by Alexander Schummer in Toronto; additional reporting by Allison Lampert in Montreal, Julie Gordon and Steve Scherer in Ottawa and Rod Nickel in Winnipeg.

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