Canada’s Minister of Labour has given a federal mediator a deadline to propose a settlement in a strike at B.C.’s ports that he describes as “paralyzing” the country’s imports and exports.
In a brief online update Tuesday evening, the BC Maritime Employers Association noted that they, along with the union representing thousands of striking dock workers, received correspondence from Seamus O’Regan saying he has invoked his statutory powers under the Canada Labour Code to instruct the mediator to draft the terms of a recommended settlement within 24 hours.
After that is received, the minister will share the proposal with both sides and give them a further 24 hours to “review and communicate their willingness to recommend the terms for ratification to their respective members.”
In his own statement Tuesday, O’Regan said he is making the move because he is confident a “good deal” is possible within this time frame in spite of the fact that negotiations have been underway since April and the strike has been ongoing for nearly two weeks.
“Today, after eleven days of a work stoppage, I have decided that the difference between the employer’s and the union’s positions is not sufficient to justify a continued work stoppage,” the statement said.
About 7,400 members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada in Vancouver have been on strike since July 1. They say they’re fighting for protections against contracting out work and automation, as well as pushing for higher wages.
The BCMEA said it met with the union on Monday night at the request of federal mediators, “but regrettably, no progress was made.”
Business owners have expressed concerns about critical shipments stuck at the port and delays in deliveries needed to complete projects on time, saying this disruption comes at a time when the supply chain still has not completely recovered from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking at a meeting of Canada’s premiers in Winnipeg, B.C., Premier David Eby said Tuesday that the group is unified in wanting the strike resolved as quickly as possible.
“It has knock-on impacts on cost of living for people across the country as goods get more expensive because imports are not available and it’s really the worst time for that,” he said.
“We also know in British Columbia, where the port is, that port workers have seen increasing costs just like everybody else.”
The cost to the economy has been estimated at anywhere between $250 million to $1 billion per week.
CALGARY – TC Energy Corp. has lowered the estimated cost of its Southeast Gateway pipeline project in Mexico.
It says it now expects the project to cost between US$3.9 billion and US$4.1 billion compared with its original estimate of US$4.5 billion.
The change came as the company reported a third-quarter profit attributable to common shareholders of C$1.46 billion or $1.40 per share compared with a loss of C$197 million or 19 cents per share in the same quarter last year.
Revenue for the quarter ended Sept. 30 totalled C$4.08 billion, up from C$3.94 billion in the third quarter of 2023.
TC Energy says its comparable earnings for its latest quarter amounted to C$1.03 per share compared with C$1.00 per share a year earlier.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
BCE Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter as it recorded $2.11 billion in asset impairment charges, mainly related to Bell Media’s TV and radio properties.
The company says its net loss attributable to common shareholders amounted to $1.24 billion or $1.36 per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a profit of $640 million or 70 cents per share a year earlier.
On an adjusted basis, BCE says it earned 75 cents per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of 81 cents per share in the same quarter last year.
“Bell’s results for the third quarter demonstrate that we are disciplined in our pursuit of profitable growth in an intensely competitive environment,” BCE chief executive Mirko Bibic said in a statement.
“Our focus this quarter, and throughout 2024, has been to attract higher-margin subscribers and reduce costs to help offset short-term revenue impacts from sustained competitive pricing pressures, slow economic growth and a media advertising market that is in transition.”
Operating revenue for the quarter totalled $5.97 billion, down from $6.08 billion in its third quarter of 2023.
BCE also said it now expects its revenue for 2024 to fall about 1.5 per cent compared with earlier guidance for an increase of zero to four per cent.
The company says the change comes as it faces lower-than-anticipated wireless product revenue and sustained pressure on wireless prices.
BCE added 33,111 net postpaid mobile phone subscribers, down 76.8 per cent from the same period last year, which was the company’s second-best performance on the metric since 2010.
It says the drop was driven by higher customer churn — a measure of subscribers who cancelled their service — amid greater competitive activity and promotional offer intensity. BCE’s monthly churn rate for the category was 1.28 per cent, up from 1.1 per cent during its previous third quarter.
The company also saw 11.6 per cent fewer gross subscriber activations “due to more targeted promotional offers and mobile device discounting compared to last year.”
Bell’s wireless mobile phone average revenue per user was $58.26, down 3.4 per cent from $60.28 in the third quarter of the prior year.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
TORONTO – Cineplex Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year ago as it was hit by a fine for deceptive marketing practices imposed by the Competition Tribunal.
The movie theatre company says it lost $24.7 million or 39 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a profit of $29.7 million or 40 cents per diluted share a year earlier.
The results in the most recent quarter included a $39.2-million provision related to the Competition Tribunal decision, which Cineplex is appealing.
The Competition Bureau accused the company of misleading theatregoers by not immediately presenting them with the full price of a movie ticket when they purchased seats online, a view the company has rejected.
Revenue for the quarter totalled $395.6 million, down from $414.5 million in the same quarter last year, while theatre attendance totalled 13.3 million for the quarter compared with nearly 15.7 million a year earlier.
Box office revenue per patron in the quarter climbed to $13.19 compared with $12 in the same quarter last year, while concession revenue per patron amounted to $9.85, up from $8.44 a year ago.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
