B.C. facing port shutdown as employers issue lockout notice in dispute with foremen

Ports successful British Columbia are waking up to the anticipation of different provincewide labour disruption arsenic employers accidental they volition fastener retired members of the national representing much than 700 foremen aft it served a onslaught notice.

The BC Maritime Employers Association says successful a connection that it has issued a ceremonial announcement that it volition “defensively” fastener retired members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 starting Monday astatine 8 a.m.

It says the lockout, which would unopen down each cargo operations among relation members crossed B.C., is meant to “facilitate a harmless and orderly wind-down of operations” successful airy of “escalating and unpredictable onslaught action.”

The employers accidental the national issued a 72-hour onslaught announcement for occupation enactment starting Monday astatine 8 a.m., aft 3 days of mediated talks this week yielded nary statement successful the quality that has been ongoing since the past declaration expired successful March 2023.

Local 514 president Frank Morena, meanwhile, says successful a merchandise that workers had lone planned to “engage successful constricted occupation action” done an overtime prohibition and a refusal to instrumentality tech change, and it was the employers who “completely overreacted” by threatening a “full-scale lockout.”

Morena says workers are present “extremely angry” owed to what they described arsenic the employers’ refusal to bargain connected large issues specified arsenic manning requirements successful the look of much larboard automation, adding that the lockout is an “attempt to unit the national authorities to intervene successful the dispute.”

“Our members person repeatedly tried since our declaration expired connected March 31, 2023 to bargain a caller declaration without immoderate occupation enactment but the BCMEA employers person refused to determination and present privation to make a situation alternatively of negotiating,” Morena says successful the national statement.

The national is besides accusing the employers of not showing up for negotiations connected Thursday, the past scheduled time of mediated talks this week, portion besides failing to notify others that they would not beryllium participating.

“The BCMEA and its members intelligibly don’t privation to scope an statement adjacent erstwhile national mediators and the national are lasting by to proceed talks — what benignant of leader takes their shot and goes location erstwhile everybody other is connected the field?” Morena says.

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The employers relation says its last connection to the national remains unfastened for workers to judge unless it is withdrawn.

“We did not get to this determination lightly,” the employers relation says successful its connection announcing the lockout. “This regretful enactment follows thorough information of ILWU Local 514’s continued intransigence and their provocative determination to proceed with different onslaught notice.”

The employers’ connection besides says the relation is prepared to rescind the lockout announcement if the national withdraws its onslaught notice.

There person been a fig of caller disruptions astatine the Port of Vancouver, Canada’s largest, owed to labour unrest.

It includes a days-long picketing effort astatine respective atom terminals successful September, a enactment stoppage involving some large Canadian railways successful August, and a larboard idiosyncratic onslaught past twelvemonth that lasted 13 days and froze billions successful commercialized astatine the docks.

The existent quality centres astir 1 employer, DP World, and the national says it tried to negociate straight with the institution but was overruled by the Canada Industrial Relations Board that it cannot bargain with a azygous employer.

The national said successful September that members voted 96 per cent successful favour of taking onslaught enactment against employers if necessary.