After resuming strikes in British Columbia yesterday, ILWU workers are once again back at work today (July 20th) after a ruling from the Canada Industrial Relations Board ordered dockworkers back for failing to provide a 72-hour strike notice. The ILWU is expected to resume its strike on Saturday, July 22nd. Shapiro will continue to monitor […]

Last week, Canada’s Minister of Labour, Seamus O’Regan, and Minister of Transport, Omar Alghabra, issued a joint statement advising that the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) had accepted a joint deal with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU). However, the leadership of the ILWU has now suggested that their members vote the recommended terms down. The leadership cited […]

The Canadian International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) has given notice for a strike to commence at 8am on July 1, 2023. Negotiations between ownership, the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA), and the ILWU are being moderated by Canada’s Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS), but it remains unclear if any early progress has […]

Last night, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) revealed they had finally reached a tentative contract agreement after 13 long months of tumultuous and turbulent negotiations. According to the announcement, both sides have informally agreed to a six-year contract that covers all 29 West Coast ports. Although the […]

Several West Coast ports were closed without notice on Friday, June 2 in response to ongoing wage disputes between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA). Additionally, Total Terminals International (TTI) has cancelled all gates today (Monday, June 5). At this time, this is a fluid situation, and it […]

The British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) and Canadian International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) have reached a tentative agreement to end yesterday’s planned labor lockout at the Vancouver and Prince Rupert ports, and will resume normal port operations effective this afternoon, Thursday, May 30th at 4:30 pm. Mediated negotiation efforts to end the lockout […]

International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) have ratified the five-year contract agreement with the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA).  The contract was confirmed on Friday, May 22, 2015, more than a year since negotiations began, and will be retroactive to the previous contract’s July 1, 2014 expiration, remaining valid through July 1, 2019. The agreement was […]

On February 20, 2015, negotiators for the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) announced a tentative five-year coastwide contract agreement.  Details of the contract are not yet available since membership of both groups must vote to ratify the agreement; a process that could take several weeks.  In the meantime, […]

While vessels idle offshore waiting to deliver commerce to U.S. West Coast ports, all eyes are on the contract battle between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA).  On Wednesday, February 4, 2015, James McKenna, PMA’s President and CEO, released details of a comprehensive offer in an attempt to […]

On January 5, 2015, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) joined the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) in their request to bring in federal mediation to resolve contract negotiations.  This announcement comes after eight months of the ILWU working without a contract, stalled talks between the two groups, high tensions, and rising congestion along the […]