British Columbia ports are again paralyzed after the workers’ union rejected an interim mediation agreement reached last week with its employer. Ottawa describes it as “illegal” and is studying “different options” to end it, while a special law is called for by various actors in the private sector.
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“This strike is illegal,” Labor Minister Seamus O’Reagan tweeted, along with a court document produced Wednesday by the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB).
The independent body set up by Ottawa to enforce the Labor Code on federally regulated businesses and unions has issued a formal notice to the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) to prevent workers from resuming the strike and to force them to resume work.
The strike is “illegal” since it was not preceded by a 72-hour notice, according to the CIRB.
This formal notice could open the way to a special law that would allow Ottawa to order the resumption of activities. However, this would require the agreement of a majority in the House of Commons.
In a press briefing on Wednesday, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre demanded that the Prime Minister resolve the impasse within 24 hours, without however mentioning any special law.
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) and Manufacturiers et Exportateurs du Québec (MEQ) are two of the groups from the private sector that are calling for special legislation as soon as possible to avoid collateral damage to businesses.
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A surprise return from the strike
In a statement issued late Tuesday, the president of the ILWU, the union which represents about 7,400 workers, said workers would be back on the picket line on Tuesday.
In question, among others: the duration of the proposed collective agreement, set at four years, “is much too long” in the current context of uncertainty”.
“With the record profits that member companies of the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) have made in recent years, employers have failed to address the cost of living issues that our workers have faced over the past two years, like all other workers,” President Rob Ashton continued.
On Tuesday evening, the federal ministers of labor and transport hinted that the government was considering “different possible options” and that they would have more information to convey during the day.
“We have been patient. Canadians have been patient. Every effort has been made. But that can’t go on any longer,” said Minister O’Reagan.
The ministers defend the negotiation process that led to the provisional agreement last week as “constructive and substantial”, and the agreement between the union and the employer as “fair and balanced”.
Until the interim mediation agreement last week, the union had been on strike for 13 days, crippling the delivery of goods across the country.