B.C. port union to recommend settlement agreement to its members

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada says it will hold a meeting Tuesday to recommend the terms of a tentative agreement to its membership.

The development may end the labour dispute between the union and the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association, which shut down the province’s port facilities for 13 days earlier this month.

In a letter to members released Friday, the union says a “stop work” meeting will begin at 8 a.m. to recommend the terms.

Confirming the recommendation, Federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan thanked the union for sending the terms to a vote.

Thank you to the ILWU Canada Longshore Caucus for sending the Terms of Settlement to a membership vote, with their recommendation for ratification.

Right now, BC ports are operating, but we need long-term stability.

— Seamus O’Regan Jr (@SeamusORegan) July 21, 2023

“Right now, BC ports are operating, but we need long-term stability,” he said on social media.

The latest comes as the union decided to rescind its 72-hour strike notice Wednesday.

That came after Federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan said the resumption of a strike at B.C.’s ports was “illegal,” following an announcement on Tuesday that a tentative deal had been rejected.

O’Regan said in a tweet Wednesday morning that the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) ruled that the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada “cease and desist” from taking part in strike action “because the union did not provide 72 hours notice.”

More to come

–With files from Emily Marsten