Truckers off the job indefinitely
Sunday meeting with government fails to resolve issues
Container truck drivers remain off the job at Port Metro Vancouver terminals indefinitely after a fruitless Sunday meeting between union leaders and provincial and federal representatives, staff at Unifor said.
Government officials refused to negotiate with the union until its drivers were working again, Gavin McGarrigle, a director for Unifor — the union representing about 400 drivers, said.
“We told them we had some questions and concerns and wanted to negotiate in good faith a resolution to the situation. We understand it’s a serious situation and we want to get our members back to work,” McGarrigle said. “One of the first comments from government was that there would be no negotiation.”
Meanwhile, Robin Silvester, president and CEO of Port Metro Vancouver, warned truckers Sunday they could face repercussions if they did not get back in their rigs.
“The efficient movement of marine containers through Port Metro Vancouver is critical,” Silvester said. “Truckers have Port Metro Vancouver issued permits that allow them, through trucking companies, to provide service to terminals at the port. A continued refusal by some truckers to provide such service is likely to result in suspension or termination of their permits by Port Metro Vancouver.”
McGarrigle said government officials were unwilling to answer questions the union has with respect to a 14- point proposal aimed at getting its members back to work that was put forward by veteran labour mediator Vince Ready.
He said the truckers are prepared to continue job action as long as it takes to get answers.
“Right now we’ve just been presented with ‘ Take it or leave it’ and ‘ Trust us,’ ” he said. “Considering that we’ve been raising these issues for eight years and haven’t gotten very far, that’s not something that’s gonna find some favour with our members.”
Manny Dosange, a spokesman for the United Truckers Association, which represents more than 1,200 non- union truck drivers, said last week there were several issues with the 14- point plan that “just didn’t fit” with members.
The parties had a meeting late Friday afternoon to discuss the plan, but McGarrigle said there were “glaring holes” and they had serious questions about how the deal would work.
One of the proposals is to increase regulated per- trip rates by 10 per cent within one month and do an expedited review of the regulatory framework. But Dosange said that percentage is not high enough, though he declined to say how much more they want, saying he didn’t want to jeopardize any possible negotiations.
He also said the proposal to provide better access to terminals by implementing a pilot project with extended hours was not acceptable because there were concerns that it was not secure enough. “What we are saying is we need a commitment for a 12- hour window and staggered breaks as far as service goes,” he said.
They also need assurances that hours will be extended at the ports, he said. “If they try this pilot project and then go back to what they were doing after only a couple of weeks then it puts everyone back in the same situation,” he said. “We need something firm from the terminal.”
He said they have questions on all 14 points, but their main concern is still waiting times at the port.
The proposal calls for an expedited rollout of the GPS monitoring system on trucks used to measure waiting times and enforce time targets for getting trucks in and out of terminals. Truck drivers who wait longer than two hours would be paid a $ 25 late fee.
More than 1,200 non- union truck drivers parked their rigs Feb. 26, with 400 Unifor- represented drivers joining them on March 10.