A source close to negotiations over the British Columbia port strike said both sides on Wednesday received the terms of a settlement recommended by a federal mediator that could end the 12-day-old industrial action.
The delivery of the terms came after federal Labour Minister Seamus OB次元官网网址橰egan late Tuesday instructed the mediator to send him the terms within 24 hours so he could forward them to the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada and the B.C. Maritime Employers Association.
The two sides have 24 hours upon receiving the recommendations to decide whether or not to ratify the agreement.
Neither side confirmed they have received the terms.
British Columbia business groups said thereB次元官网网址檚 no guarantee the strike will end quickly despite OB次元官网网址橰eganB次元官网网址檚 move.
The groups, including the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, the B.C. Council of Forest Industries, the B.C. Chamber of Commerce and the Mining Association of B.C., said at an event in Vancouver on Wednesday that they are continuing to call for federal back-to-work legislation to end the strike involving 7,400 dock workers at more than 30 ports, including CanadaB次元官网网址檚 busiest, the Port of Vancouver.
B次元官网网址淲hile we hold some hope that a deal can be reached, the reality is that if either party opts out, we will have added $1.6 billion to the trade disrupted and be back in the exact same place,B次元官网网址� said Board of Trade president and CEO Bridgitte Anderson.
B次元官网网址淓very single hour and every single day that this labour dispute goes on, we are putting our international reputation at risk, we are putting jobs at risk, and itB次元官网网址檚 also hurting our economy.B次元官网网址�
Anderson said an estimated $8.9 billion in trade has been disrupted since the strike began, and 63,000 shipping containers are B次元官网网址渨aiting on the water to be unloadedB次元官网网址� at B.C. ports.
That number could balloon to 245,000 by the end of July if the strike isnB次元官网网址檛 resolved by then, she said.
OB次元官网网址橰egan said Tuesday the gap between the workersB次元官网网址� and employersB次元官网网址� positions was B次元官网网址渘ot sufficient to justify a continued work stoppage.B次元官网网址�
The mediatorB次元官网网址檚 recommended terms are non-binding, and either side can vote to reject them.
B.C. Premier David Eby said at the close of a premiersB次元官网网址� meeting in Winnipeg on Wednesday that the strike cannot drag on.
B次元官网网址淭his isnB次元官网网址檛 just the Port of Vancouver, itB次元官网网址檚 the port of Saskatchewan, itB次元官网网址檚 the port of Alberta and itB次元官网网址檚 the port of Manitoba,B次元官网网址� Eby said. B次元官网网址淪o itB次元官网网址檚 critically important infrastructure for Canadians, for people who go to work in industries where those goods are exported globally.
B次元官网网址淚t has a profoundly damaging impact across the country on workers who are also trying to feed their families right now.B次元官网网址�
But Eby also said the unionB次元官网网址檚 concerns about inflation and rising costs of living are real, and there was a need for striking port workers to B次元官网网址渂e treated fairly.B次元官网网址�
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe said his provinceB次元官网网址檚 potash customers could soon take their business to Russia and Belarus if the dispute continues.
B次元官网网址淭oday, it might be easier for you to get a ton of Russian potash fertilizer than it is to get a ton of Saskatchewan potash fertilizer,B次元官网网址� Moe said. B次元官网网址淪o the impacts are much broader than whatB次元官网网址檚 happening just at the port there.B次元官网网址�
On Tuesday, Nutrien Ltd. said it had curtailed production at its Cory potash mine in Saskatchewan due to the strike.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said if businesses canB次元官网网址檛 get their goods to markets because of the strike, Canada could start to lose international customers.
Michael Goehring, president and CEO of the Mining Association of B.C., said some customers from foreign markets have been asking about the port strike and when it will end.
Goehring said some member mines have diverted shipments to other ports, while others resort to stockpiling products on-site or in railcars.
B次元官网网址淭here are physical and financial limits to how long mines can continue to do this,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址� If the strike continues for much longer, some of our members will have to start planning for shutdowns and temporary layoffs.B次元官网网址�
The B.C. business groups on Wednesday launched a real-time B次元官网网址淧ort Shutdown CalculatorB次元官网网址� to show what they say is the cumulative cost of the strike.
Fiona Famulak, president and CEO of the B.C. Chamber of Commerce, said Canadian consumers would begin feeling the wider impact of the shutdown B次元官网网址渋n a matter of daysB次元官网网址� if they did not already.
B次元官网网址淲e have an affordability issue here in British Columbia,B次元官网网址� Famulak said. B次元官网网址淭he strike is going to make that worse. We have a housing issue here in British Columbia, and the delay on raw materials whether itB次元官网网址檚 steel for rebar, whether itB次元官网网址檚 component parts, whether itB次元官网网址檚 hard goods, will delay construction schedules.
B次元官网网址淚t will delay delivery of industrial, commercial and residential residences. It will result probably in higher cost to renters and higher cost to those looking to purchase.B次元官网网址�
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