A labour dispute at the Port of Vancouver means farmers are paying more
to move their grain, says the union representing locked-out workers.
Grain that would normally move out of Vancouver is being rerouted to
the northern British Columbia port of Prince Rupert. That includes
grain shipped through the Canadian Wheat Board and non-board grain.
The detour will cost farmers more to ship grain.
“Farmers in southern Alberta and Saskatchewan, they have to pay $4.50
per tonne more freight rate to go up to Prince Rupert,” said
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Grainworkers Union Local 333 president Bob MacPherson.
Canadian National Railway spokesperson Jim Feeny said that is
incorrect.
“Over the last couple of years we have narrowed the spread between
Prince Rupert and Vancouver.
“We have worked to make Prince Rupert more competitive and on the CN
origins we have narrowed that spread to, on average, about $2.50,” said
Feeny.
A spokesperson for the CWB said the agency is working to reduce or
eliminate the extra fees.
“We have been negotiating with CN to minimize that impact,” said Louise
Waldman.
Farmers say they are tired of paying the extra costs associated with
labour disruptions in the grain transportation system.
“It just cuts that much more into a bottom line that isn’t very healthy
already,” said Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan
president Terry Hildebrandt.
He said the grain companies have already announced they are increasing
their handling charges and now comes the news that it’s going to cost
more to ship grain to the West Coast.
“I don’t know how much more we can take. There’s just no margins in the
game now,” said Hildebrandt.
The Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association has sent a letter to
federal agriculture minister Lyle Vanclief requesting that Ottawa take
action to help settle the dispute, which began Aug. 26 when 650
Grainworkers Union members were locked out by the British Columbia
Terminal Elevator Operators.
“Another labour dispute at the West Coast is the last thing farmers
need right now,” said Western Canadian Wheat Grower Association
president Art Enns.
A spokesperson for Agricore United, which operates terminals at the
Port of Vancouver, said grain companies are negotiating with farmer
interests in mind.
“We’re trying to improve things so that we can enhance the returns to
the farmers of Western Canada,” said Murdoch MacKay.
He said operators have agreed to give terminal workers wage increases
and to put money into a fund for severance packages. In return they are
looking for more flexibility on working hours and other items he says
will lead to production improvements.
MacPherson said 100 percent of the union members rejected management’s
last proposal because the work scheduling and layoff recall practices
the grain companies are requesting are not acceptable. He said because
of the small crop the grain companies that own the five terminals in
Vancouver feel they can shut down their operations there for four to
six months, and move grain in the second half of the shipping year.
MacKay wouldn’t comment on that assertion, but said the Canadian Wheat
Board shipped half a million tonnes of grain to the West Coast in
August and he doesn’t expect the programs to be much bigger in upcoming
months.
“That’s something that Prince Rupert can handle very easily,” said
MacKay.
