Business groups continued to call on the federal government to take action in the wake of the recently resolved British Columbia port workers dispute on Saturday, arguing Ottawa must ensure such a disruption never happens again.
But the federal government is walking a difficult tightrope between the demands of the business community and protecting workers’ constitutional rights, labour experts said.
“On one hand, they obviously don’t want to offend the very powerful business community. On the other hand, they don’t want to alienate the labour groups they’ve been courting for years,” said Larry Savage, a professor in the labour studies department at Brock University.
The union representing about 7,400 B.C. port workers announced Friday that members had voted almost 75 per cent in favour of their latest contract offer, ending five weeks of turbulence that stopped the shipping of billions of dollars’ worth of goods.
This included a 13-day strike that began on Canada Day, affecting more than 30 B.C. port terminals and other related sites.
After the results of the ratification vote were announced, federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan issued a statement saying he was directing federal officials to review the entire case to avoid a port disruption of this magnitude from happening in the future.
“This dispute caused serious disruption to our supply chains, risking our strong international reputation as a reliable trading partner. We do not want to be back here again,” said O’Regan, adding, “We will have more to say on this soon.”
Representatives from O’Regan’s office offered no further comment on Saturday.
B.C.’s Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure welcomed the new contract and said it will begin rolling out further “actions to support goods movement and economic growth in B.C” in the coming months.
“In B.C. we will continue to strengthen our supply chain network by focused on integrating our infrastructure projects into a well-planned and forward-thinking transportation trade network,” a spokesperson wrote in an emailed statement to CBC on Saturday.
The ILWU Canada membership has voted in favour of the deal. <br><br>Both parties have now ratified the agreement.<br><br>Statement from Minister Rodriguez and me: <a href=”https://t.co/xpyTFgxtAo”>pic.twitter.com/xpyTFgxtAo</a>
The Liberal government has been under intense pressure to settle the port dispute for weeks, said Savage.
Business groups and some political leaders called for back-to-work legislation amid the dispute and say concrete action is still needed now that it has come to an end, with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business asking the feds to designate ports as an essential service and scrap its promise to ban replacement workers.
The strike and the uncertainty it caused have been costly for small businesses, federation President Dan Kelly said in a statement Saturday.
WATCH | Workers walk off the job across Canada:
Strikes across Canada part of ‘red hot labour summer’
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British Columbia ports are not the only sites of tense labour disputes this summer, as frustration over wages and job security prompt other strikes across the country, from Manitoba Liquor Marts to Toronto supermarkets.
“Although the work stoppage is over, it will take weeks for the backlog to be addressed and, as a result, the financial consequences for small businesses across Canada will be challenging for months to come.”
Kelly said the situation shows an urgent need to rethink Canadian labour laws so that the broader economy and Canada’s international reputation are considered in the cases of strikes and lockouts in critical areas.
The Canadian Chamber of Commerce also chimed in, with Vice-President Robin Guy issuing a statement saying Ottawa needs to “consider providing new tools that can be used in the face of labour disputes in sectors that are critical to Canada’s supply chain.”
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business and Canadian Chamber of Commerce have both called for changes to labour codes following the strike. (Ben Nelms/CBC)
Back-to-work legislation shouldn’t be default: prof
The changes being called for by business groups, if enacted, would weaken workers’ rights and powers in negotiations and sweep key issues under the rug, said Barry Eidlin, an associate professor of sociology at McGill University specializing in labour movements and labour policy.
But some would also be difficult to enact, he said. Workers have constitutional rights when it comes to labour action, including striking.
Eidlin said throughout the B.C. ports dispute, he was struck by what he described as an an ongoing pattern in Canadian labour relations that sees calls for back-to-work legislation floated as a default response in some quarters.
“That is just a very destructive dynamic for having healthy industrial relations,” he said. “It basically short-circuits the collective bargaining process and puts the thumb on the scales for the employer side, and then reduces their incentive to actually bargain.”
This issue is a “minefield” for the Liberal government, Savage added.
“If they do what the business community wants, they will not only alienate organized labour but they will also potentially find themselves violating the Charter of Rights,” he said.
Barry Eidlin from McGill University says proposed labour changes would sweep issues under the rug. (Ben Nelms/CBC)
The Liberals and the NDP have promised anti-scab legislation through their supply-and-confidence agreement, noted Savage, something the labour movement has sought for more than two decades.
While no details have emerged about the four-year deal covering the B.C. port workers, the employers association said in a statement that it “includes increases in wages, benefits and training that recognizes the skills and efforts of B.C.’s waterfront workforce.”
The two sides had been negotiating since February, with the last agreement expiring at the end of March. The main points of contention had been protecting jobs against automation and the contracting out of maintenance work to third parties.
TORONTO – Roots Corp. may have built its brand on all things comfy and cosy, but its CEO says activewear is now “really becoming a core part” of the brand.
The category, which at Roots spans leggings, tracksuits, sports bras and bike shorts, has seen such sustained double-digit growth that Meghan Roach plans to make it a key part of the business’ future.
“It’s an area … you will see us continue to expand upon,” she told analysts on a Friday call.
The Toronto-based retailer’s push into activewear has taken shape over many years and included several turns as the official designer and supplier of Team Canada’s Olympic uniform.
But consumers have had plenty of choice when it comes to workout gear and other apparel suited to their sporting needs. On top of the slew of athletic brands like Nike and Adidas, shoppers have also gravitated toward Lululemon Athletica Inc., Alo and Vuori, ramping up competition in the activewear category.
Roach feels Roots’ toehold in the category stems from the fit, feel and following its merchandise has cultivated.
“Our product really resonates with (shoppers) because you can wear it through multiple different use cases and occasions,” she said.
“We’ve been seeing customers come back again and again for some of these core products in our activewear collection.”
Her remarks came the same day as Roots revealed it lost $5.2 million in its latest quarter compared with a loss of $5.3 million in the same quarter last year.
The company said the second-quarter loss amounted to 13 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Aug. 3, the same as a year earlier.
In presenting the results, Roach reminded analysts that the first half of the year is usually “seasonally small,” representing just 30 per cent of the company’s annual sales.
Sales for the second quarter totalled $47.7 million, down from $49.4 million in the same quarter last year.
The move lower came as direct-to-consumer sales amounted to $36.4 million, down from $37.1 million a year earlier, as comparable sales edged down 0.2 per cent.
The numbers reflect the fact that Roots continued to grapple with inventory challenges in the company’s Cooper fleece line that first cropped up in its previous quarter.
Roots recently began to use artificial intelligence to assist with daily inventory replenishments and said more tools helping with allocation will go live in the next quarter.
Beyond that time period, the company intends to keep exploring AI and renovate more of its stores.
It will also re-evaluate its design ranks.
Roots announced Friday that chief product officer Karuna Scheinfeld has stepped down.
Rather than fill the role, the company plans to hire senior level design talent with international experience in the outdoor and activewear sectors who will take on tasks previously done by the chief product officer.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, are set to resume today as a strike that has stopped most services drags into a second week.
No timeline has been set for the length of the negotiations, but Joe McCann, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they are willing to stay there as long as it takes, even if talks drag on all night.
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people unable to navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last Tuesday, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
Hundreds of drivers rallied outside TransLink’s head office earlier this week, calling for the transportation provider to intervene in the dispute with Transdev, which was contracted to oversee HandyDART service.
Transdev said earlier this week that it will provide a reply to the union’s latest proposal on Thursday.
A statement from the company said it “strongly believes” that their employees deserve fair wages, and that a fair contract “must balance the needs of their employees, clients and taxpayers.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – Travel company Transat AT Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year earlier as its revenue edged lower.
The parent company of Air Transat says it lost $39.9 million or $1.03 per diluted share in its quarter ended July 31.
The result compared with a profit of $57.3 million or $1.49 per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue in what was the company’s third quarter totalled $736.2 million, down from $746.3 million in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Transat says it lost $1.10 per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of $1.10 per share a year earlier.
Transat chief executive Annick Guérard says demand for leisure travel remains healthy, as evidenced by higher traffic, but consumers are increasingly price conscious given the current economic uncertainty.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
