Business

7-month forestry strike may soon be over as Western Forest Products

Published

5 years ago

February 10, 2020

Western Forest Products and the United Steelworkers union have reached a tentative collective agreement after a seven-month-long labour dispute.

The agreement between the company and the union was announced Monday.

About 3,000 Vancouver Island forest workers and contractors represented by United Steelworkers Union Local 1-1937 have been off the job since July 1, striking over potential loss of pensions, seniority rights and long-term disability benefits.

Mediators Vince Ready and Amanda Rogers were working with the two sides, but booked out earlier this month, when both the union and company said they were too far apart to reach a settlement.

The provincial government reappointed the two as special mediators last Thursday, which gave them additional powers under the labour code to reach a deal.

“We have reached a fair and equitable agreement that balances the needs of our employees and our business,” said Don Demens, president and CEO of Western Forest Products.

“This has been a particularly challenging time and I’m pleased that we were able to find common ground through the efforts of all involved.

North Island mayor thrilled

Port McNeill Mayor Gaby Wickstrom said she was elated to hear the news as the strike has been hard on her community, where many people depend on the industry for employment.

“I’m thrilled they came to an agreement,” said the mayor, who also noted it will take a while for people and businesses in the area to get back on their feet.

“It’s been 7½ months, you don’t go with next to no income for 7½ months and not have some repercussions,” said Wickstrom on Monday on CBC’s On The Island.

She said a silver lining of the strike was seeing how locals came together to help those in need, hosting community dinners and delivering hampers to families going without.

Wickstrom said the group Loonies for Loggers, which was created in September by Campbell River residents Tamara Meggitt and Rona Doucette to deliver food to people in financial dire straits, will continue with its work for at least a month to keep people afloat until their paycheques start coming in again.

David Elstone, executive director of the truck loggers association, said he’s “very happy to finally see a resolution,” adding the past several months have been “really painful” for all those impacted.

“It’s too bad that [the strike was so] long and it only takes four days of government influence to … get these people back to work,” he said.

Estone noted the forest industry usually sees an increase in demand into the spring.

The agreement still needs to be ratified by United Steelworkers members. The union bargaining committee has advised they will be recommending its members accept it.

Doug Donaldson, the minister of forest, lands, natural resource operations and rural development, said in a statement he’s “hopeful this will mean Island forestry workers are back on the job soon, supporting their families and communities.”

“We are working hard to ensure our forests support B.C. jobs … by processing our logs here on the coast and maximizing the value to communities. … We remain committed to supporting a sustainable forest sector,” the statement said.

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Business

Carry On Canadian Business. Carry On!

Published

20 hours ago

October 22, 2024

Steven Kaszab

Human Resources Officers must be very busy these days what with the general turnover of employees in our retail and business sectors. It is hard enough to find skilled people let alone potential employees willing to be trained. Then after the training, a few weeks go by then they come to you and ask for a raise. You refuse as there simply is no excess money in the budget and away they fly to wherever they come from, trained but not willing to put in the time to achieve that wanted raise.

I have had potentials come in and we give them a test to see if they do indeed know how to weld, polish or work with wood. 2-10 we hire, and one of those is gone in a week or two. Ask that they want overtime, and their laughter leaving the building is loud and unsettling. Housing starts are doing well but way behind because those trades needed to finish a project simply don’t come to the site, with delay after delay. Some people’s attitudes are just too funny. A recent graduate from a Ivy League university came in for an interview. The position was mid-management potential, but when we told them a three month period was needed and then they would make the big bucks they disappeared as fast as they arrived.

Government agencies are really no help, sending us people unsuited or unwilling to carry out the jobs we offer. Handing money over to staffing firms whose referrals are weak and ineffectual. Perhaps with the Fall and Winter upon us, these folks will have to find work and stop playing on the golf course or cottaging away. Tried to hire new arrivals in Canada but it is truly difficult to find someone who has a real identity card and is approved to live and work here. Who do we hire? Several years ago my father’s firm was rocking and rolling with all sorts of work. It was a summer day when the immigration officers arrived and 30+ employees hit the bricks almost immediately. The investigation that followed had threats of fines thrown at us by the officials. Good thing we kept excellent records, photos and digital copies. We had to prove the illegal documents given to us were as good as the real McCoy.

Restauranteurs, builders, manufacturers, finishers, trades-based firms, and warehousing are all suspect in hiring illegals, yet that becomes secondary as Toronto increases its minimum wage again bringing our payroll up another $120,000. Survival in Canada’s financial and business sectors is questionable for many. Good luck Chuck!. at least your carbon tax refund check should be arriving soon.

Steven Kaszab
Bradford, Ontario
skaszab@yahoo.ca

Business

Imperial to cut prices in NWT community after low river prevented resupply by barges

Published

24 hours ago

October 22, 2024

Anne Joseph

NORMAN WELLS, N.W.T. – Imperial Oil says it will temporarily reduce its fuel prices in a Northwest Territories community that has seen costs skyrocket due to low water on the Mackenzie River forcing the cancellation of the summer barge resupply season.

Imperial says in a Facebook post it will cut the air transportation portion that’s included in its wholesale price in Norman Wells for diesel fuel, or heating oil, from $3.38 per litre to $1.69 per litre, starting Tuesday.

The air transportation increase, it further states, will be implemented over a longer period.

It says Imperial is closely monitoring how much fuel needs to be airlifted to the Norman Wells area to prevent runouts until the winter road season begins and supplies can be replenished.

Gasoline and heating fuel prices approached $5 a litre at the start of this month.

Norman Wells’ town council declared a local emergency on humanitarian grounds last week as some of its 700 residents said they were facing monthly fuel bills coming to more than $5,000.

“The wholesale price increase that Imperial has applied is strictly to cover the air transportation costs. There is no Imperial profit margin included on the wholesale price. Imperial does not set prices at the retail level,” Imperial’s statement on Monday said.

The statement further said Imperial is working closely with the Northwest Territories government on ways to help residents in the near term.

“Imperial Oil’s decision to lower the price of home heating fuel offers immediate relief to residents facing financial pressures. This step reflects a swift response by Imperial Oil to discussions with the GNWT and will help ease short-term financial burdens on residents,” Caroline Wawzonek, Deputy Premier and Minister of Finance and Infrastructure, said in a news release Monday.

Wawzonek also noted the Territories government has supported the community with implementation of a fund supporting businesses and communities impacted by barge cancellations. She said there have also been increases to the Senior Home Heating Subsidy in Norman Wells, and continued support for heating costs for eligible Income Assistance recipients.

Additionally, she said the government has donated $150,000 to the Norman Wells food bank.

In its declaration of a state of emergency, the town said the mayor and council recognized the recent hike in fuel prices has strained household budgets, raised transportation costs, and affected local businesses.

It added that for the next three months, water and sewer service fees will be waived for all residents and businesses.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.

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Business

U.S. vote has Canadian business leaders worried about protectionist policies: KPMG

Published

24 hours ago

October 22, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – A new report says many Canadian business leaders are worried about economic uncertainties related to the looming U.S. election.

The survey by KPMG in Canada of 735 small- and medium-sized businesses says 87 per cent fear the Canadian economy could become “collateral damage” from American protectionist policies that lead to less favourable trade deals and increased tariffs

It says that due to those concerns, 85 per cent of business leaders in Canada polled are reviewing their business strategies to prepare for a change in leadership.

The concerns are primarily being felt by larger Canadian companies and sectors that are highly integrated with the U.S. economy, such as manufacturing, automotive, transportation and warehousing, energy and natural resources, as well as technology, media and telecommunications.

Shaira Nanji, a KPMG Law partner in its tax practice, says the prospect of further changes to economic and trade policies in the U.S. means some Canadian firms will need to look for ways to mitigate added costs and take advantage of potential trade relief provisions to remain competitive.

Both presidential candidates have campaigned on protectionist policies that could cause uncertainty for Canadian trade, and whoever takes the White House will be in charge during the review of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement in 2026.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.

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