26 April 2004

Vancouver tug strike over

The following article is excerpted from the 24 April 2004 edition of “The Journal of Commerce”.

[The] … strike by tug boat workers that crippled operations at the Port of Vancouver (schedules) ended after labor and employers accepted a federal mediator's contract proposal.

The Council of Marine Carriers agreed to terms late Friday, one day after the Canadian Merchant Service Guild, representing 800 tug and barge masters, mates and engineers in lower British Columbia.

Complete terms of the settlement were not immediately disclosed, but one required the union to return to work while a ratification vote was being arranged.

Employers offered a package of wage increases and health benefits totaling about 13.75 percent over three years; the union was seeking about 17 percent.

The strike had shut down Deltaport, the largest of the Port of Vancouver's three container terminals, and seriously hampered operations at Fraser Surrey Docks outside Vancouver. Terminals at Vancouver's Inner Harbor were worked by tugs under a different contract and were not affected by the strike. …