July 18, 2023 – In a surprising and disappointing twist, the union has rejected the mediated settlement recommended by its own leadership and the Canada west coast port strike resumed about 1 hour ago. More news as it develops.
July 12, 2023 – Canaan Transport is pleased to report that a tentative deal has been reached and the west coast Canada port strike will end shortly. More details to come.
July 12, 2023 – It appears that we are close to seeing an end to the port strike as Seamus O’Regan, the federal labour minister, yesterday night invoked his statutory powers under the Canada Labour Code and has named a Mediator to draft the terms of a recommended settlement within 24 hours. After such time, the Labour Minister will share the proposal with both sides (BCMEA/ILWU) and will provide another 24 hours for them to review and communicate such proposal with their members for ratification. Picket lines remain in place at the Container Terminals and all marine terminal cargo operations continue to be shut down. Canaan Transport is now looking at the restart as soon as next week if all goes well. Customers with diversion request are asked to contact our team directly for further discussion.
July 10, 2023 – Talks in Pacific Canada between striking dock workers and their employers have resumed after four days away from the negotiation table, a statement on Saturday by the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) showed. The BCMEA and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada (ILWU Canada) met on Saturday, supported by federal mediators, the statement said. The talks had stalled on Tuesday and the two sides broke off negotiations. As we have always stated, a compromise by both sides must be had for a successful negotiation. Canaan Transport looks forward to a speedy resolution to put an end to this strike.
July 7, 2023 – There are now increased calls from various stakeholders for government intervention in Canada’s west coast port strike. As of today, 2 container vessels have already decided to skip Canadian ports and proceed to the USA. In addition, new data from MarineTraffic shows 15 containerships bound for Vancouver and 9 containerships bound for Prince Rupert. Canaan Transport has heard from various sources that the government is strongly looking at recalling parliament sooner rather than later. More news as it develops. We also take this opportunity to inform our customers and partners that our terminals across Canada are currently closed to accepting new inbound shipments. If you require assistance, please contact us to discuss.
July 7, 2023 – It appears that the port strike could last until at least the weekend with no news from either side despite some strong rhetoric in the media. At this time, we are advising customers who are looking to export shipments to consider the alternate ports of Montreal and Halifax. Customers with import cargoes are urged to wait and see for one more week to see if the port strike is resolved. We will update further on this blog with any new developments.
July 4, 2023 – Now entering the 4th day of the strike, Canaan Transport wanted to update its readers on the latest situation specifically at the Port of Vancouver. The port authority is taking proactive measures to manage vessel arrivals and anchorage assignments to maintain port fluidity, ensure the safe movement of vessels and manage anchorage capacity for terminals not affected by strike activity. The following operational procedures are in place during labour action:
- Inner Harbour: Maximum stay of 48 hours will be strictly enforced, and assignment will be limited to bunkering, fumigation, staging area or emergency situations.
- English Bay and Indian Arm: The maximum stay limit of 7 days will be lifted. All anchorages will be reserved to support operations at terminals not affected by strike activity, partly loaded vessels that are delayed due to labour action, and larger vessels that can only be accommodated in English Bay.
- Southern Gulf Islands: These anchorages will be assigned per the interim protocol for waiting vessels; a balanced use of these anchorages across the South Coast BC region and commodity sectors will be ensured.
Vessels in port can be viewed on the home page of the PortVan eHub app by selecting “Vessels in Port” via the port authority’s mobile app.
Rail operations: CPKC trains to embargoed destinations continue to move west under permit.
CN: CN is reviewing capacity allocation (loads and empty) for its international services to the ports in British Columbia. Customers will be notified individually on the capacity that was provided and requirements to be removed or reduced.
CPKC: An embargo for shipments routing to the below locations is now in place. This embargo applies to all shipments originating in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico that are billed to the following:
- Neptune Bulk Terminals Canada
- Neptune Bulk Terminals Ltd
- Neptune Terminals
- Pacific Coast Terminals
- West Coast Reduction
- Global Agriculture
- Columbia Containers
- GCT Canada
- WTC Group
The embargo is a temporary measure pending an agreement between the ILWU and the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) and can be rescinded at any time. During the embargo period, CPKC’s network will remain open to accept permits in order to accommodate rail traffic as capacity allows.
GCT Vanterm and Deltaport: Day shift (08:00-15:59) and afternoon shift (17:00-23:59) truck gates are closed today due to ongoing negotiations. Terminal gate efficiency fees (TGEF) for cancelled reservations on these and other shifts will be waived.
July 3, 2023 – As we head into the 3rd day of the Canada west coast port strike, there has been no update on the negotiations and little is expected to happen until the end of this week. Currently, the Canadian government is on leave so for legislation to be passed to bring the workers back to work, parliamentarians will first need to be recalled. More updates will be given when available.
July 1, 2023 – On Canada Day, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) today set up picket lines as of 8 AM at the marine terminals at the Port of Vancouver as well as the Port of Prince Rupert. Negotiations continued through the night between ILWU and the BC Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) but to this point have failed to secure a tentative agreement. All marine terminal container operations are effectively shut down and behind picket lines. It is our understanding that both parties continue to meet and negotiations have not broken off between the parties.
We will continue to monitor the situation closely and advise further of any updates/confirmations as they become known to us.
June 28,2023 – The ILWU Canada association has issued a 72 hour strike notice to the west coast ports in Vancouver and barring any reprieve there will be a strike on July 1. Affected customers will be contacted individually by our team members. More news as it develops.