The week-long port strike in British Columbia has not begun to be felt by consumers, however businesses are beginning to feel the effects from the cessation of dock activities which are responsible for moving 25% of the nation’s trade, according to experts.
The strike began on July 1st, when 7,400 members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada closed down over 30 ports on the west coast.
According to Robin Guy, vice president and deputy leader of government relations at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, over $800 million Canadian dollars worth of cargo moves through the affected ports every day.
Guy said, “It affects us, it affects people internationally who are relying on Canadian goods to be delivered.”
The director of government relations for the Retail Council of Canada, Greg Wilson, said he expected consumers in Canada would not “really see significant impacts for weeks.”
He added however that small businesses, which have thin margins and are still trying to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic would not escape feeling some effects.
He added, “If you’re a small retailer, if your goods are stuck, wow are you annoyed.” However he noted the effects would not be as harsh on larger retailers. “They have supply chain professionals (who) can work to divert containers” to different ports.
Robert Kavcic, a senior economist with the Bank of Montreal, noted that businesses which would be particularly hard hit would be exporters of goods like potash, fertilizer, or forest goods.
He said, “The longer those outbound shipments get backed up, the more issues they have here domestically with inventories at their own location and possibly having to cut back production because of that.”
On Friday, the British Columbia Council of Forest Industries issued a statement calling on the parties to resolve their issues and come to an agreement. It notes that roughly 15 billion Canadian dollars ($11 billion) per year worth of forest products move through the ports.
The provincial governments in Alberta and Saskatchewan, as well as business groups have implored the national government to intervene to force the parties to end the strike. The government intervened, using legislation in 2021, ending a strike by dockworkers at the Port of Montreal after only one day of the walkout.
However at a news conference Friday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that his belief is the bargaining table produces the best deals.
However the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association, which represents the employers involved in the strike, said it did not believe an agreement would come from more negotiations.
