Port Workers Strike in Montreal (Update)

Bourgeois organizations are pushing both the provincial and federal governments to intervene quickly to limit the economic damage that could be caused by an extended standoff between Montreal Port workers and the Maritime Employers Association.

The federal government refused to intervene despite repeated requests from the Patronage and the Quebec provincial government. Remember that the Port of Montreal is under federal jurisdiction (Government of Canada) and that workers are not protected by anti-scab law.

In addition, on the side of local 375, a truce took place on August 21, 2020, after 12 days of strike and picket. However, the strike was going very well and the situation was in favor of the workers of the Port of Montreal. In fact, the Conseil du patronat du Québec (CPQ), the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal (CCMM), the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), the Federation of Quebec Chambers of Commerce (FCCQ) and the Manufacturers and Exportateurs du Québec (MEQ) began to fear the worst, and the economic damage was already being felt.

Despite this refusal, a 7-month truce was signed between the union and the employer. What can be frustrating for the stevedores on strike is that they had the balance of power (the strike was starting to cost the employers dearly) and now risks losing it, leaving the MEA to organize its response in 7 months. The union reportedly acted out of fear of losing its right to strike if the situation continued as rumors of Canadian government intervention began to be heard. The longshoremen are therefore returning to zero and if the union strategy turns out to be the same after the truce, the marathon towards a new agreement is not about to end. The unions in Quebec are very good at this game: to let a fight get bogged down, run out of steam, and thus see workers vote for a bargain convention in the face of what seems to be an endless situation.