Lost grain exports estimated at $35 million per day (ID 23472491 © Vismax | Dreamstime.com)

By Canadian Press

Grain farmers worry strike at west coast terminals will cost millions in lost exports

Sep 24, 2024 | 10:14 AM

Picket lines have gone up at six grain terminals in Metro Vancouver as workers began a strike.

More than 600 workers represented by Grain Workers Union Local 333 are off the job.

Canada’s labour minister, meanwhile, says he spoke with both the employer and representatives of Grain Workers Union Local 333 on Monday, and they have agreed to resume contract negotiations alongside federal mediators.

Steven MacKinnon posted the message on the social media platform X, saying Canadian farmers had a “bumper crop” and they need to get it to market.

Union president Douglas Lea-Smith says the labour minister’s involvement is a positive step, and there is a meeting scheduled Wednesday between the union and the employer to try to resolve the “impasse” arising from bargaining so far.

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A statement issued by the Vancouver Terminal Elevators Association says it concluded conciliation with the union with assistance from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service on Aug. 26, but could not come to an agreement on a new contract.

The affected operations include Viterra’s Cascadia and Pacific Terminals, Richardson International Terminal, Cargill Limited Terminal, G3 Terminal Vancouver and Alliance Grain Terminal, all located in Vancouver and North Vancouver.

The group Grain Growers of Canada says in a statement that it is “deeply concerned” about a potential strike, since about 52 per cent of all Canadian-grown grain went to those terminals last year.

The group says a strike would “halt nearly 100-thousand metric tonnes” of commodities arriving each day, potentially costing 35-million dollars daily in lost exports.