The interim agreement that ended the strike by BC dockers includes a compounded 19.2% wage increase over four years, as well as higher signing and severance payments.
The deal, which the federal conciliation commission is recommending, provides for wage increases of 5% each for the first two years, followed by 4% increases for the final two years, according to two sources familiar with the settlement. It stipulates wage increases.
About 7,400 members of the International Ports and Warehousing Union of Canada (ILWU) ended their 13-day strike last Thursday.
The Globe and Mail did not identify sources because it was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.
The signing fee, which the ILWU calls an “inflation allowance,” will be about $3,000 depending on hours worked in 2022.
Retirement benefits designed to compensate employees for modernization and mechanization will be increased by 18.5%. This fund for union members, known as M&M Pay, has increased over the years to a current lump sum of $81,250, according to two sources, and workers with more than 25 years of service receive within 30 days of retirement. can receive payment. Familiar with the situation.
Retirement benefits exceed benefits and pensions, depending on credit services.
Until now, the payments have been an important part of keeping workers in peace as employers try to address job security concerns amid decades of technological innovation.
The British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA), which represents 49 private companies, including shipowners and terminal operators, declined to comment on details of the interim agreement.
Business groups have warned that it could take until late September or longer to fully clear the cargo piled up since Canada Day.
The Greater Vancouver Trade Commission estimated that the labor movement destroyed $9.9 billion in the value of goods from the morning of July 1 through last Thursday afternoon, based on a rate of $800 million per day. ing.
About 6,000 of ILWU’s members are in the Vancouver area, 1,000 are in the Prince Rupert area, and the rest are on Vancouver Island.
The July 14th Bulletin of Negotiations, which incorrectly stated compounded wage increases of 18% over four years, was not signed by ILWU leaders.
ILWU’s Local 500, which represents employees along Burrard and Howe Bay, told union members that the bulletin was on official letterhead but should be ignored.
“The Local 500 are extremely upset and disgusted to learn that their letterheads have been hijacked,” he said. “Not only is it not from us, it contains misleading information and violates the union’s social media policy.”
Local 500, one of more than a dozen local residents, added that ILWU members distributing the newsletter risk losing their union status. “Those responsible for this forgery could be prosecuted and face deregistration if convicted.”
His five-year contract expired on March 31.
The mediator’s proposed wage increase is that the general base rate for weekday shifts from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. will now apply to an hourly rate of $48.23, increasing to approximately $57.51 an hour in the fourth year of the contract proposal. Rise. The interim collective agreement he will start on April 1, 2023 and end on March 31, 2027.
Current wages are $75.05 an hour for cemetery work from 1:00 am to 8:00 am Monday through Friday.
Premiums are paid for shifts on weekends and holidays.
The ILWU cites rising cost of living wages as one of the three main issues alongside the impact of outsourcing and automation on job security. The union asked for a two-year contract, but the employer offered a four-year contract.
Federal Arbitration and Arbitration Commissioner Peter Simpson drafted a document recommending a four-year collective bargaining agreement that led to the interim settlement, two sources familiar with the matter said. The proposed settlement is subject to ratification by the ILWU and BCMEA.
With the negotiating table stalled, Labor Minister Seamus Oregan arrived in Vancouver on June 30 and stayed until July 13, when the union agreed to allow members to return to work.
Canadian Chamber of Commerce Chief Economist Stephen Tapp declined to comment on the proposed four-year deal. But he said there could be an inflationary impact from higher wages for the labor force in general.
“That could sustain economic momentum and inflationary pressure,” Mr. Tup said in an interview.
However, research commissioned by the ILWU downplays the impact of higher wages on the economy as a whole.
A report released last week by economist and director of the Center for Future Work Jim Stanford said the five largest shipping companies had $103.3 billion in profits last year, compared to their pre-COVID-19 profits in 2019. was $6.2 billion. .
“It’s shipping lines and terminal operators whose greed has roiled Canada’s economy, including contributing to the worst inflation in decades,” Stanford said in a report. “Clearly, labor is not the cause of rising shipping costs and consequent inflation.”
Daily cargo volumes could return to pre-strike levels by the end of the month, but the knock-on effect of this labor movement is likely to be a long one, as clearing the backlog of containers and other cargo will be a long process. It will last for at least several weeks. According to shipping industry insiders, the relationship between importers and exporters is the same.
For example, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce estimates that around 21,000 truck trips were postponed in the Port of Vancouver alone during the strike, part of the supply chain disruptions in the trucking and rail sectors. .
“These disruptions will be felt far beyond ports on Canada’s west coast. deaf,” the Chamber of Commerce said in a statement.