Port of Montreal employers file final offer, lockout notice

The Port of Montreal. (LA PRESSE CANADIENNE/Christinne Muschi)

Port of Montreal employers presented their "final, comprehensive" offer to the longshoremen on Thursday.

If they refuse, the employers say they plan to call a lockout at 9 p.m. Sunday.

According to the Maritime Employers Association (MEA), the most recent offer provides a wage increase of more than 20 per cent over six years, that is three per cent per cent per year for four years and 3.5 per cent for the subsequent two years, including a retroaction for the start of 2024.

The union had already said it would accept the same wage increases granted to longshoremen at the ports of Vancouver and Halifax, which was 20 per cent over four years.

The MEA points out that under the proposed contract, the average total remuneration of a longshoreman would be over $200,000 per year, and would also apply to pensions and benefits.

In return, the MEA is asking its employees for a minimum of one hour's notice for an absence before a shift to "reduce absence management issues that significantly affect day-to-day operations."

Employers are demanding a response from the Syndicat des débardeurs du port de Montréal, a local of the Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec (FTQ) affiliated Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), by 8 p.m. Sunday evening.

If they refuse, they say they will call a lockout an hour later.

In the event of a lockout, "only essential services and activities not related to longshoring will continue at the Port of Montreal," said the MEA.

According to the employers, the current negotiations "have major consequences for businesses in Quebec and Canada," since the value of goods transiting through the Port of Montreal is close to $400 million a day, generating $268 million in economic activity.

The MEA says it remains "ready to collaborate in any initiative that the Minister of Labour may propose with a view to reaching a satisfactory agreement between the parties as quickly as possible."

Since Oct. 31, an unlimited partial strike has paralyzed two Port of Montreal terminals, Viau and Maisonneuve, operated by Termont.

The longshoremen have also refused to work overtime since Oct. 10.

In mid-October, the federal Minister of Labour, Steven MacKinnon, had proposed that they call in a special mediator, but his offer fell through.

Earlier this week, he confirmed that his offer was still on the table.

Negotiations to renew the collective agreement for the 1,200 longshoremen have been going on for a year.

The previous negotiation, in 2021, ended with a special law forcing the workers back to work.

-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Nov. 8, 2024.