May 1, 2021 – As expected, the Senate adopted Bill C-29, the Port of Montreal Operations Act, Friday night and the legislation received Royal Assent. Now that the port is open again, they will begin to work on the delays in availability of your Import Cargo scheduled to arrive at the Port of Montreal and for your Export Cargo previously scheduled to depart from the Port of Montreal. Cost Recovery measures may be necessary to cover any/all additional charges resulting from the congestion and increased dwell times at the port. Diversion fees may also apply if/when carriers divert Vessels. Canaan Transport Group Incorporated welcomes the return to work and looks forward to a final resolution to this matter.
April 29, 2021 – The House of Commons approved legislation early Thursday morning to put an end to the strike that has shut down one of Canada’s busiest ports Conservatives joined forces with the minority Liberal government early Thursday morning to pass Bill C-29 by a vote of 255-61. Three Liberals, as well as Bloc Quebecois, NDP and Green MPs, voted against it. The bill is aimed at quickly reopening the Port of Montreal, where the flow of millions of tonnes of goods came to halt after 1,150 dockworkers began a strike Monday morning. It must still be passed by the Senate, which is scheduled to deal with the bill Friday.
April 28, 2021 – Federal Labour Minister Filomena Tassi has tabled back-to-work legislation for the Port of Montreal’s 1,150 dock workers, who have been on strike since Monday morning. The legislation, debated yesterday afternoon, would require employees to return to work after the bill passes. It would also extend their previous collective agreement until a new one is negotiated. The legislation would also prevent any strikes or lockouts until a new agreement is signed and impose a mediator-arbitrator on both parties if negotiations fail again. Shortly before 4 pm, Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole issued a statement, saying his party would support the back-to-work legislation.
April 27, 2021 – Further to the strike declared by the CUPE 375 union, Montreal Gateway Terminals Partnership (MGT , Section 62, Section 77) issued the following customer advisory:
Trucking service will remain closed until further notice. Note that, as commercial consideration to shippers and receivers, terminal storage on import and export storage will be suspended for the duration of the closures resulting from this strike. Given the uncertainty of the operational impacts this strike will have to MGT’s organization post-strike, priority loading updates will be closed until further notice, as will the rerouting of cargo from rail to truck for grounded units, only. For units that have not yet arrived, MGT strongly urges customers to make necessary routing corrections prior to vessel arrival. It also encourages customers to contact their shipping lines for information regarding MGT’s ERS program for containers moving by rail. Once operations resume, MGT will work with its partners to limit the duration of the impacts related to this strike.
April 26, 2021 – On Sunday, the Government of Canada issued a Notice Paper indicating that it will introduce a bill, entitled “An Act to provide for the resumption and continuation of operations at the Port of Montreal,” this morning. The notice identifies a process that will avoid some of the usual legislative steps to ensure a quick response to the labour situation. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce is calling for swift passage of the legislation. Things are moving swiftly to avoid a tragic delay at the Port of Montreal. The mediator has called for meetings today with both the MEA And the union. Carriers have begun contingency plans to move cargo and ships for increased costs. Customers are advised that most terminals will be closed for all truck and rail traffic for the forseeable future.
April 23, 2021 – The Longshoremen’s union has given 72 hour notice to the Maritime Employers Association that as of April 26 at 7:00 a.m. the union will be in a legal strike position. All work performed by the union members at the port will cease except for Oceanex services protected as essential.
April 21, 2021 – Last Thursday, April 15, the Maritime Employers Association presented a counter proposal to the Longshoremen’s Union. The parties have not met since and nothing is currently scheduled in terms of further negotiations. The union, in accordance with their partial strike decision, did not work over the April 17-18 weekend. The railways indicate they are operating as planned, but there is a current backlog due to increased imports (from 2 weeks ago) and the past weekend’s strike action. Cargo originating from the U.S. Midwest is in many cases diverting to other ports. Truck productivity has increased approximately 18% as cargo is moving via road. Next week is expected to be problematic, with potential for further backlog, as six vessels are scheduled to arrive at the Port of Montreal. Canaan transport expects congestion and further delays as the union’s partial strike continues.
April 19, 2021 – Container spot rates are beginning to head upwards again across all trades from already elevated levels, as carriers reduce their commitment to contract volumes in favour of much higher FAK rates.
The FBX China-North Europe component is up a phenomenal 430% on the same time last year, at a time in the supply chain cycle when rates are generally under slack season pressure before a peak season recovery in July. One UK-based NVOCC said this week his carrier had not only doubled his contract rate from Asia, but had also cut his minimum quantity commitment by 75%. “We now have only a quarter of our business covered by the new contract and the rest will be at the mercy of the line’s FAK rates and all manner of surcharges,” he said. The forwarder also works for clients with a sizeable U.S. market and complained that rates on the transatlantic were now “out of control.”
April 15, 2021 – Two weeks after it was freed from the Suez Canal, the giant container ship Ever Given is once again stuck, snared in a legal row between Egyptian authorities and the ship’s owners over the financial impact of the accident. The massive ship has been impounded by a court in Ismailia, as the Suez Canal Authority pursues its Japanese owners for the cost of the salvage operation and lost transit fees for the week that the canal was blocked. Our customers with cargo on board this vessel have already been notified and insurance claims are already proceeding. Please contact your sales representative for any additional information.
April 15, 2021 – The Longshoremen’s Union Local 375 posted a release from its Quais Express publication on its Facebook page on April 14. The release was titled, “Meeting with Federal Mediators and Half-Truths from the Port of Montreal.” Highlights from the release, authored by President Martin LaPierre, provide the union’s perspective on recent events:
• At 2 pm on April 13, union representatives met with the three federal mediators appointed by the Minister of Labour.
• The meeting was called at the request of the federal mediators to discuss the state of negotiations.
• The MEA has not yet made itself available for further negotiations despite claiming it is still ready and available to negotiate.
• The union has asked the federal mediators to call the parties back to the table for further negotiations and is waiting for a response from mediators on this point.
• In response to the MEA’s claim that the Port of Montreal’s March traffic volume dropped by 11% due to uncertainty around labour negotiations and the diversion of traffic to other ports, the union claims that the total drop in volumes is 5.07% and that the 11% figure actually refers to a drop in petroleum/liquid bulk, which is a direct consequence of the pandemic. The union also stated that longshoremen from local 375 are never involved in the handling of liquid bulk at the Port of Montreal.
• The union planned to meet again yesterday. Members were told to continue with their work as scheduled and await further communication from the local.
Yesterday evening, the MEA notified Canaan Transport that the mediators have summoned both parties back to the table to negotiate today.