Two days have passed since the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Ship & Dock Foremen Local 514 camped out on Scott Road in Prince Rupert in protest after their employers locked them out of work on Monday afternoon.
Today, Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Taylor Bachrach addressed a crowd of about 30 foremen and pledged his support to them.
"The Canada Labour Act has a Section 107 which allows the minister to force binding arbitration, and we feel that that is fundamentally undermining the rights of workers to collectively bargain," Bachrach said. "We know that the best deals are made at the table. And our message right now is to the Marine Employers Association to come back to the table and to hammer out a fair deal with you folks, because you deserve that."
He also urged Steven MacKinnon, the Minister of Labour, to do everything he can to bring the employer back to the negotiating table. Bachrach and his colleagues have spoken on the issue in the House of Commons, urging the minister to take action, and they have also written a letter to him.
"Now the risk here is if the government keeps reaching for that Section 107 lever, then the employers get the idea that they don't have to collectively bargain, because the government is going to rescue them every single time. And if we go down that path, then the hard-won rights of workers in Canada are going to be lost."
Bachrach emphasized that the stakes are very high given the facility where the crowd is employed, and its significance as a vital part of Canada's economy.
Nathan Lavallee, the third vice president of Local 514, noted the employer has been highlighting their wages in the offered contract online, which may distract the public from the real issue.
"It doesn't matter if we make $1,000 an hour, if they take our jobs to automation – we have no job to go to, you make nothing an hour; we're sticking up for what's right," said Lavallee.
The protesting workers state that while they are not entirely against some new technology usage, they are seeking a compromise. They also feel frustrated by being locked out of their workplace by DP World, a foreign employer with considerable influence over the Canadian government.
"We're here to stay, as long as it takes," said Lavallee at the picket line.
DP World operates the Fairview Container Terminal at Prince Rupert's port.
Bachrach noted several automated ports already operate worldwide. Per Port Economics, Management, and Policy (PEMP), 71 container terminals worldwide were fully or partially automated as of mid-2024. Such ports use automated machines and systems to manage the movement of containers and other cargo.
Prince Rupert's locked-out workers argue that while automation may benefit other cities, it threatens the livelihoods of a significant proportion of Prince Rupert's population, which could lead to an unsustainable community.
Keith Cociani, president of ILWU Local 505, said that in addition to the approximately 75 Local 514 workers who were locked out, around 30 Local 505 workers and maintenance workers are refusing to cross the picket line.
He said approximately 300 to 400 workers, typically dispatched to work on ships daily, have not been scheduled since Monday. Cociani emphasized that this situation will have a detrimental impact on both imports and exports in the area and on all local business owners who depend on port workers for supply.
