Montreal workers strike again

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Dockers at the Port of Montreal began a new strike Thursday morning, forcing the indefinite closure of two container terminals at the country’s second-largest port.

The Port of Montreal says its Viau and Maisonneuve terminals are closed until further notice, paralyzing 40 per cent of the port’s total container handling capacity.

The union, which represents about 1,200 dock workers, began its latest strike at 11 a.m., affecting two terminals operated by Thurmont. Up to 320 workers took part in the latest strike.

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Thursday’s strike is in addition to an ongoing overtime strike affecting the entire port and follows a three-day strike at the same two container terminals earlier this month. The union also held a 24-hour work stoppage on Sunday.

Representatives of the union, which is affiliated with the Canadian Union of Public Employees, said they were prepared to call off the strike if an agreement was reached on the scheduling portion of the dispute.

Earlier this week, union officials said Thurmont was under attack for its extensive use of scheduling practices that the union opposes on the grounds that they affect work-life balance.

The Maritime Employers’ Association condemned the strike but said it could not meet demands for changes to working hours without formal negotiations.

“The schedule used at various docks… called into question by the union in recent days is enshrined in the current collective bargaining agreement and cannot be used as a bargaining chip for a strike against a single operator, as is the case today,” a group spokesman wrote. on Thursday in a press release.

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The workers have not had a contract since December 31, 2023. In addition to issues related to scheduling and work-life balance, the union is also demanding higher wages. It said it would accept the same raises given to its counterparts in Halifax or Vancouver, or 20 per cent over four years.

In a statement, Port of Montreal CEO Julie Gascon warned that a prolonged shutdown could have widespread economic impacts and called on the parties to reach an agreement. She said ships are already being forced to change routes to other ports.

“This new shutdown at the Viaux and Maisonneuve terminals, at the heart of our supply chain, can only have a profoundly negative impact on thousands of local businesses, as well as the economy of Quebec and Canada as a whole,” she said. wrote. “This closure affects half of our international container terminals and adds to the climate of uncertainty that is eroding the reliability and image of our logistics sector, which is a key element of the trust that businesses place in the greater Montreal ecosystem.”

The employers’ association said it had already made some cuts in response to the industrial dispute and warned that “difficult but necessary decisions may have to be made to deal with the many consequences of this new strike”.

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He also repeated his call for the federal Labor Minister to intervene and bring the parties back to the negotiating table.

Earlier this month, federal Labor Minister Stephen MacKinnon proposed appointing a special mediator to allow the parties to resume negotiations without a lockout or strike within 90 days, but the proposal was rejected.

In a statement Thursday, MacKinnon’s office said the parties “should find a process leading to a negotiated agreement as quickly as possible.”

“Federal mediators and Secretary McKinnon remain committed to helping them, and we continue to monitor the situation closely.”

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