The Port of Montreal is reopened after the federal government legislated an end to a workers’ strike that had caused shipping delays across Canada.
The Montreal Port Authority said full operations have been restored after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau ordered an end to the strike over the weekend. A new collective agreement will now be established between the workers and the employer, and work stoppages will no longer be possible.
The strike, which began on April 26, affected cargo handling in the container and dry bulk sectors. The Port of Montreal warned customers to expect delays in the coming weeks as shipping delays caused by the strike are unwound.
The dock workers called the federal government’s back-to-work legislation "unconstitutional."
"Prime Minister Trudeau just sent a loud and clear message to every employer in the country: don’t bother bargaining in good faith with your workers, because if things get tough, we’ll be there to bail you out," said Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) President Mark Hancock in a news release.
An average of $275 million worth of goods pass through the Port of Montreal each day. It is eastern Canada’s biggest port and feeds into the country’s most populated regions. Last year, the Port of Montreal handled 1.6 million containers holding 35 million metric tons of goods and commodities.
