A 49-year-old man who allegedly drove his van into the picket line of longshoremen in Quebec City was arrested on Thursday evening, Quebec City police (SPVQ) reports.

The individual was arrested for assault with a weapon and mischief under $5,000. He will be released on a promise to appear. An investigation has been opened, according to SPVQ spokeswoman Sandra Dion.

Around 80 longshoremen at the Port of Quebec have been locked out for more than 10 months.

According to their union, the arrested man was a new security guard hired by the employer to take replacement workers to their place of work.

He allegedly did not wait the required five minutes before crossing the picket line, and even "stepped on the accelerator" to run into the picketers, said union adviser Nina Laflamme.

She described the incident as a "heinous gesture."

"Since the start of the labour dispute, the union and its members have witnessed numerous acts of violence. (...) The threat of physical violence is recorded on an almost daily basis," said Laflamme.

The employer, the Société des arrimeurs de Québec, reacted on Friday evening in a short statement sent by e-mail.

"We do not tolerate any acts of violence or intimidation; this principle applies to all parties. We are in the process of validating certain facts with the authorities concerning the incident that is currently under investigation," the statement reads.

The Société des arrimeurs is an employers' association based in the Port of Quebec that operates in the stevedoring industry (loading and unloading of ships).

It represents its member companies, QSL, G3 Canada and Logistec, on a day-to-day basis.

In an e-mail message sent late today to The Canadian Press, QSL "deplores all acts of violence, both verbal and physical."

The company maintains that "the interpretation of events is questionable" and points out that "the event named is under investigation."

It added: "We reiterate that solutions can only be found at the negotiating table between the Canadian Union of Public Employees and the Société des arrimeurs de Québec.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Aug. 11, 2023.