Leaders of labour federations across Canada are warning the federal government not to introduce any back-to-work legislation to force striking British Columbia port workers to return to their jobs, saying that any such attempt will be met with “strong resistance.”
Canadian Labour Congress President Bea Bruske and her provincial and territorial counterparts sent a jointly signed letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on July 11 telling his government that any kind of legislative action against the striking B.C. port workers “would be a serious misstep,” as first reported by Blacklock’s Reporter.
Over 7,400 B.C. port workers who are members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada (ILWU) have been on strike since July 1 as their union attempts to negotiate a new labour agreement with the BC Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA), which represents nearly 50 of B.C.’s private-sector waterfront employers….