Longshore worker unions denounce federal intervention in railway labour conflict

Rail workers picket in front of CN headquarters on the first day of a nationwide rail shutdown, after workers were locked out by CN and CPKC when new contract agreements weren't reached by the midnight deadline, in Montreal, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Ryan Remiorz, The Canadian Press)

Unions representing longshore workers at the country's major ports are promising to put pressure on the federal government if it won't commit to staying out of potential labour disputes in the sector.

Labour leaders representing dock workers in Vancouver, Montreal and Halifax told reporters Thursday they are ready to mobilize against Ottawa if the government gets involved the way it did in last week's railway lockouts.

Their comments were in reaction to the federal government's decision to call for binding arbitration and force an end to a work stoppage at the country's two major railways less than a day after it began.

In Montreal Thursday, union leaders from around the country said they wrote to federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon asking whether he intends to invoke powers under Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code for the longshore sector.

At the Port of Montreal, negotiations continue with the Maritime Employers Association to renew the longshore workers' collective agreement, which expired in Dec. 31.

Michel Murray, a union adviser with the Canadian Union of Public Employees, did not want to specify what mobilization might look like, saying workers' next steps will depend on how MacKinnon responds. "We will not remain inactive," he said.

"But it's certain dock longshore workers across Canada will not let the right to the balance of power that belongs to us (unions) to be shredded," he said.

Murray says the unions, as part of a second phase, would also put pressure on the New Democratic Party about its plans to stay in a support and confidence agreement with the Liberals that is propping up the party's minority government.

The unions say the decision taken by Ottawa in the railway sector trampled the constitutional rights of union members to negotiate collectively. Murray didn't mince words, saying the Liberal government betrayed workers and "with the stroke of a pen," sent a message to Canadian businesses that when negotiations are thorny, Ottawa will come to their rescue.

"The balance of power no longer means anything," Murray said, saying that the right to strike and to exert economic pressure have been affected.

"There is no longer an employer in Canada where it will be difficult to negotiate … They will have no interest in negotiating with us, they know that the government will do the dirty work for them," Murray said.

Three years ago, Montreal's 1,150 longshoremen went on strike, causing the port, one of the busiest in Canada, to close. They were forced back to work with the adoption of a special law by the House of Commons, a few days after the start of the walkout.

The government argued at the time that the strike was causing too much damage to the Canadian economy.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 29, 2024.