The dockworker strike at Western Canadian ports has dragged into its sixth day today (Thursday, July 6), putting a dent in Canadian rail traffic.
Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Kansas City have both issued embargoes for certain types of freight moving to Vancouver and, in the case of CN, Prince Rupert, British Columbia.
“CPKC is closely monitoring developments and we are in direct communication with our customers. Temporary embargoes have been issued for export traffic destined to the Port of Vancouver allowing traffic to move west while protecting network fluidity. We urge a swift resolution to protect North American supply chains and the Canadian economy,” says CPKC spokesman Patrick Waldron.
A CN spokesman said the railway is reducing intermodal customer capacity in response to the strike.
“Where possible, CN has taken steps to help mitigate the service disruptions to Canada’s West Coast port supply chains, as well as the likelihood of related impacts across the CN network. Those steps include preventing the flow of certain traffic, and reducing intermodal customer capacity allocations to British Columbia ports,” spokesman Jonathan Abecassis says. “BC ports handle more than $800 million worth of cargo every day, goods that Canadians need. We urge both parties and the federal government to do what is necessary to get goods moving again.”
Some 7,400 members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada went on strike on July 1 over wages, automation, and the contracting out of maintenance work at 49 waterfront employers at 30 ports on Canada’s West Coast [see “Strike shuts down British Columbia ports,” Trains News Wire, July 2, 2023]. They include Vancouver, Canada’s busiest port, and Prince Rupert, its third-busiest.
Not all commodities are affected, and grain continues to flow through Vancouver. But eastbound originating container traffic has been halted.
Last month CPKC sent nearly 35,000 containers eastward from Vancouver, while CN carried nearly 30,000 boxes, according to data from RailState, a company that closely tracks rail volumes and commodities in Canada.
The BC Maritime Employers Association said the strike has disrupted more than $3.7 billion worth of cargo, including auto parts, refrigerated food, fertilizer, and minerals that are not reaching Canadians or their trading partners.
Several Canadian business groups have asked Ottawa to intervene, but federal labor officials say the impasse should be resolved at the bargaining table.
