Vancouver Truckers Stage Protest; Possible Strike Looms

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ruckers at the Port of Vancouver, British Columbia, staged a protest Tuesday, calling on the Canadian federal government to extend a temporary agreement that got truckers back to work after a strike there last year, the Canadian Press reported Wednesday.

About 200 truckers protested by driving slowly in downtown Vancouver and stalling traffic, CP said. An agreement brokered by a federal mediator is scheduled to expire Thursday, after which truckers said a strike could erupt, it reported.

Truckers said the rates set up by the mediator would decline and that about 400 companies that are not part of the Canadian Auto Workers’ union would undercut unionized workers, CP reported.

Meanwhile, the Vancouver Port Authority said in a statement that trucks entering its facilities starting May 25 will have to be registered in its licensing system, requiring them to make reservations to pick up and drop off containers.

The port said the licensing requirements are part of its response to last summer's work stoppage by about 1,000 drayage drivers.

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