New tentative deal reached in B.C. port strike
The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada and B.C. Maritime Employers Association issued a joint statement late Sunday saying a deal has been reached with help from the Canada Industrial Relations Board, which had been tasked with ending the dispute that had dragged on since the beginning of the month, according to The Vancouver Sun.
A joint statement from the union and the employers association offers no details on the new deal but says both sides are encouraging members to ratify the agreement.
The breakthrough in the dispute came after union members voted Friday to reject a previous deal, prompting federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan to intervene and direct the board to determine if a negotiated agreement was still possible.
O’Regan said that otherwise the board was to “impose final binding arbitration.”
The dispute over a new collective agreement saw workers strike from July 1 to 13, stalling billions of dollars worth of cargo from moving in or out of some of the country’s busiest ports.
