B.C. port strike: Union to recommend settlement deal to members

In a development that may end the B.C. port strike, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada (ILWU) said Friday that it will recommend members accept a deal with the employer.

In a notice posted on its website, the union said there will be a stop-work meeting Tuesday for the 8 a.m. shift to recommend the terms of the settlement to the membership.

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The labour dispute between the union and the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) shut down the province’s port facilities for 13 days earlier this month.

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“The tentative agreement presented is the result of months of negotiations and mediation; we are hopeful that the voting membership, like the ILWU Caucus Leadership and Bargaining Committee, will support the fair and equitable deal as recommended by the senior federal mediator,” the BCMEA said in a statement.

The latest development comes after a dizzying week in which the strike appeared to be over, then back on, then over again.

Last week, the BCMEA and ILWU appeared to have reached settlement after a deal was proposed by a federal mediator, temporarily halting strike action.

But the union’s contract caucus rejected the deal on Tuesday, without presenting it to members for a full vote, and by Wednesday workers were back on the picket line.

The employer then filed a complaint with the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB), which ruled the job action was unlawful without proper notice, and federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan publicly called the action “illegal.”

The union subsequently issued a new 72-hour strike notice later on Wednesday — before rescinding it hours later without explanation.

-with files from Simon Little