Labour minister directs board to consider imposing new contract or arbitration on B.C. port workers

Canada's labour minister says he is taking action to restore long-term stability at B.C.'s ports after unionized workers rejected a tentative agreement late Friday night.

Canada's labour minister says he is taking action to restore long-term stability at B.C.'s ports after unionized workers rejected a tentative agreement late Friday night.

Labour Minister Seamus O'Regan issued a statement Saturday saying he had directed the Canada Industrial Relations Board to determine whether the union's decision "has eliminated the possibility of a negotiated resolution" to ongoing labour strife on Canada's west coast.

"If the board determines that to be the case, I have directed them to either impose a new collective agreement on the parties or impose final binding arbitration to resolve outstanding terms of the collective agreement," O'Regan said.

The minister's action comes less than 24 hours after the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada announced that its longshore division had "said no to the terms of the settlement," throwing B.C.'s ports back into turmoil.

"Today we call on our direct employers to come to the table and negotiate something that works for our members and the industry," the union said in a brief statement Friday night.

The union has been without a contract since March 31, when its previous deal with the BC Maritime Employers Association expired.

Negotiations on a new contract began late last year, but have been fraught, ultimately culminating in a 13-day strike action by the union.