Wages Take Centre Stage as Port Worker Strike Rolls On Following a Brief Resumption of Negotiations This Weekend

Wages have now taken centre stage in the dispute between port workers and their employers as they search for a new agreement.

Members of the International Longshore Workers Union, who work at 29 ports across BC, are on day 11 of strike action.

Talks with the BC Maritime Employers Association picked back up on Saturday after breaking down last Monday, but failed to end in a deal.

But they did garner a new proposal from the Association, which they say addresses the Union’s concerns over the use of third party contractors.

It would establish a committee to create guidance on what constitutes regular maintenance, expand ILWU jurisdiction, and make the Union whole for missed work.

That proposal was rejected by the Union, who have shifted the discussions back to another sticking point: wages.

While container freight costs have grown from $2,000 to $10,000 at their peak since 2020, the Union says wages have only gone up by 6.6 percent.

They say that, since 2019, the Association’s top employers have seen profits rise by 1,500 percent, while workers have struggled with rising costs of living.