The federal government has instructed workers and management in the St. Lawrence Seaway strike to sit down with a mediator this Friday and hash out their differences, as groups ranging from grain farmers to steelmakers feel the squeeze.
The job action by 361 Unifor members at 13 of the 15 locks along the key trade corridor kicked off Sunday, shutting it down immediately. The union and management authority both said on Tuesday they would comply with the government notice for mediation.
In the meantime, producers continue to fret.
Crosby Devitt, who heads Grain Farmers of Ontario, said the majority of crops yielded by the 28,000 producers he represents are exported, as farmers wrap up the soybean harvest and begin to reap corn.
“It’s a huge impact,” he said.
“It’s like a chain reaction. As it stops at the port, there’s terminals all along the Great Lakes and along the St. Lawrence River […] They’ll get full of grain, and then it backs up to the farm and potentially can be sitting in the field, subject to wildlife damage — or snow soon enough — moisture and rotting.”
Devitt said there is no export alternative to the seaway, which runs between Lake Erie and Montreal and carried $16.7 billion worth of cargo last year — nearly half of it grain and iron ore.
Cabinet ministers weigh in
The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp. has applied to the Canada Industrial Relations Board for an exception on the transport of grain, a request that if granted would see the commodity flow through the artery despite the strike.
Federal cabinet ministers had been urging both sides to resume negotiations. Representatives from Unifor and the seaway last met minutes before the strike began at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday morning.
“They’re meant to figure this out,” Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan told reporters in Ottawa on Tuesday.
“I’m saying that I’ll use every friggin’ device in the Canada Labour Code that I can find to make sure that they do a deal at the table, because that’s the ones that are sustained.”
‘It’s the farmer that is suffering’
The full Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway system, also known as “Highway H2O,” serves over 100 ports and commercial docks and helps Canada’s Prairie provinces and the U.S. Midwest export goods. Grain, iron ore, petroleum products, stone and coal are among its key commodities.
Algoma Central, the biggest domestic ship operator on the Great Lakes, said many of its ships are now docked, waiting to haul iron ore to mills in Hamilton where it will be turned into steel for the auto industry.
Fertilizer Canada CEO Karen Proud said distributors and retailers are also concerned about the effective freeze on imported plant nutrients, which need to be on store shelves by early spring for planting season.
“It’s the farmer that is suffering,” she said. “With all that’s going on in the world right now, Canada has to be a reliable partner.”
Factories in Central Canada are hard hit as well, said Dennis Darby, CEO of the Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters industry group.
“If you’re a company in southern Ontario building a large machine or components for machines that are going to Europe […] you’ve been affected.”
Shipments of cement, stone and gypsum bound for construction sites in the Greater Toronto Area are being held up too.
“We have a lot of traffic moving into the GTA for construction purposes. That’s very important in a climate where we need more housing,” said Bruce Burrows, CEO of the Chamber of Marine Commerce.
The seaway shutdown is costing the economy roughly $100 million in lost revenue daily, he claimed.
TORONTO – Canada Goose Holdings Inc. says it has signed a deal that will result in the creation of its first eyewear collection.
The deal announced on Thursday by the Toronto-based luxury apparel company comes in the form of an exclusive, long-term global licensing agreement with Marchon Eyewear Inc.
The terms and value of the agreement were not disclosed, but Marchon produces eyewear for brands including Lacoste, Nike, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Longchamp and Zeiss.
Marchon plans to roll out both sunglasses and optical wear under the Canada Goose name next spring, starting in North America.
Canada Goose says the eyewear will be sold through optical retailers, department stores, Canada Goose shops and its website.
Canada Goose CEO Dani Reiss told The Canadian Press in August that he envisioned his company eventually expanding into eyewear and luggage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Almost seven years since news broke of an alleged conspiracy to fix the price of packaged bread across Canada, the saga isn’t over: the Competition Bureau continues to investigate the companies that may have been involved, and two class-action lawsuits continue to work their way through the courts.
Here’s a timeline of key events in the bread price-fixing case.
Oct. 31, 2017: The Competition Bureau says it’s investigating allegations of bread price-fixing and that it was granted search warrants in the case. Several grocers confirm they are co-operating in the probe.
Dec. 19, 2017: Loblaw and George Weston say they participated in an “industry-wide price-fixing arrangement” to raise the price of packaged bread. The companies say they have been co-operating in the Competition Bureau’s investigation since March 2015, when they self-reported to the bureau upon discovering anti-competitive behaviour, and are receiving immunity from prosecution. They announce they are offering $25 gift cards to customers amid the ongoing investigation into alleged bread price-fixing.
Jan. 31, 2018: In court documents, the Competition Bureau says at least $1.50 was added to the price of a loaf of bread between about 2001 and 2016.
Dec. 20, 2019: A class-action lawsuit in a Quebec court against multiple grocers and food companies is certified against a number of companies allegedly involved in bread price-fixing, including Loblaw, George Weston, Metro, Sobeys, Walmart Canada, Canada Bread and Giant Tiger (which have all denied involvement, except for Loblaw and George Weston, which later settled with the plaintiffs).
Dec. 31, 2021: A class-action lawsuit in an Ontario court covering all Canadian residents except those in Quebec who bought packaged bread from a company named in the suit is certified against roughly the same group of companies.
June 21, 2023: Bakery giant Canada Bread Co. is fined $50 million after pleading guilty to four counts of price-fixing under the Competition Act as part of the Competition Bureau’s ongoing investigation.
Oct. 25 2023: Canada Bread files a statement of defence in the Ontario class action denying participating in the alleged conspiracy and saying any anti-competitive behaviour it participated in was at the direction and to the benefit of its then-majority owner Maple Leaf Foods, which is not a defendant in the case (neither is its current owner Grupo Bimbo). Maple Leaf calls Canada Bread’s accusations “baseless.”
Dec. 20, 2023: Metro files new documents in the Ontario class action accusing Loblaw and its parent company George Weston of conspiring to implicate it in the alleged scheme, denying involvement. Sobeys has made a similar claim. The two companies deny the allegations.
July 25, 2024: Loblaw and George Weston say they agreed to pay a combined $500 million to settle both the Ontario and Quebec class-action lawsuits. Loblaw’s share of the settlement includes a $96-million credit for the gift cards it gave out years earlier.
Sept. 12, 2024: Canada Bread files new documents in Ontario court as part of the class action, claiming Maple Leaf used it as a “shield” to avoid liability in the alleged scheme. Maple Leaf was a majority shareholder of Canada Bread until 2014, and the company claims it’s liable for any price-fixing activity. Maple Leaf refutes the claims.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:L, TSX:MFI, TSX:MRU, TSX:EMP.A, TSX:WN)
TORONTO – TD Bank Group, which is mired in a money laundering scandal in the U.S., says chief executive Bharat Masrani will retire next year.
Masrani, who will retire officially on April 10, 2025, says the bank’s, “anti-money laundering challenges,” took place on his watch and he takes full responsibility.
The bank named Raymond Chun, TD’s group head, Canadian personal banking, as his successor.
As part of a transition plan, Chun will become chief operating officer on Nov. 1 before taking over the top job when Masrani steps down at the bank’s annual meeting next year.
TD also announced that Riaz Ahmed, group head, wholesale banking and president and CEO of TD Securities, will retire at the end of January 2025.
TD has taken billions in charges related to ongoing U.S. investigations into the failure of its anti-money laundering program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
