Port of Montreal longshoremen deliver strike notice for Monday as labour dispute continues

1,000 port employees walk off job More than 1,000 workers in the Port of Montreal have walked off the job after nearly two years without a contract.

MONTREAL — The labour dispute continues between the Maritime Employers Association (AEM) and longshoreman union (CUPE) in Montreal.

On Friday morning, union president Martin Lapierre sent the AEM (Association des employeurs maritimes) a strike notice announcing a complete work stoppage on the two Termont terminals starting Monday at 7 a.m. and going until Friday Aug. 7 at 6:59 a.m.

The strike will affect 355 longshoremen, foremen and maintenance personnel.

Members of the Port of Montreal Longshoremen's Union began a four-day strike last Monday morning that was scheduled to end Friday morning at 6:59 a.m.

Union adviser Michel Murray explained earlier this week that the dispute was mainly about longshoremen work schedules and said he believed the strike would put pressure on the employers' association.

Last Tuesday evening, Local 1657 of the International Longshoreman Association (IDA) handed a strike notice to the maritime employers association. According to the union, the stalemate is related to job security and the jurisdiction of union members' duties.

Union president Ian Mulcahy says terminal operators have set up new technology in an attempt to eliminate auditor jobs.

On Thursday, five employer groups said they were extremely concerned about the impact on the economy of escalating tensions at the Port of Montreal. They blamed the Longshoremen Union CUPE for taking the economy hostage.

The Quebec Employers Council (CPQ), the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal (CCMM), the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), the Federation of Quebec Chambers of Commerce (FCCQ) and Manufacturiers et Exportateurs du Québec (MEQ) called on all governments to intervene quickly to limit the damage that may result from prolonging of this situation.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 31, 2020.