Port strikes have been at the forefront of ocean freight services to and from North America during the past few weeks, and the latest updates bring some good, some bad and the ugly.
The Good – Canada Strike Ends
After several weeks of walkouts and indefinite strikes at ports throughout Canada, operations have resumed this past weekend.
Ports reopened after the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) ordered a return to work. The strikes have been severely impacting ocean and rail freight services and the country’s economy.
The Bad – Canada Backlogs Remain
The strike period has led to a huge backlog of containers at Montreal and Vancouver, which is likely to continue disrupting logistics for the next few weeks.
Thousands of containers were grounded and vessels were queueing at anchor during the strikes. The congestion has also hit rail terminals and led to congestion at other ports, and backlogs could take a long time to clear across the board.
The Ugly – US Port Negotiations Break Down Again
It’s getting ugly again between the ILA union and the PGMX as the latest round of talks has broken down due to port automation.
October’s US East and Gulf Coast port strike, which lasted just three days, was suspended until January 15th. While pay was agreed for port worker’s master contracts at the time, there were other issues outstanding that need to be negotiated before the January deadline.
The breakdown in talks has led to the two parties publicly criticising each other and fears that more strike action could be ahead in the new year.
– Your MultiFreight Team
