Government acts to bring labour stability to the port

NEWS PORT OF VANCOUVER

THE Government of British Columbia introduced legislation on Thursday to bring labour stability to the container trucking industry serving Port Metro Vancouver.

The introduction of this legislation is a key action being taken by the Province following the release of a report with recommendations submitted by veteran mediator Vince Ready and Corinn Bell, after several months’ worth of consultation with the federal and provincial governments, the port and the trucking sector.

The legislation will:

* Bring into force rate regulation for the marine container trucking companies serving the port.

* Establish a new, independent container trucking commissioner, who will assume responsibility for all Truck Licencing System licenses in place following planned licence reforms by Port Metro Vancouver, and will administer future truck licences.

The commissioner will be directed to establish and consult with an Industry Advisory Committee, to support the intended mandate of ensuring long term stability and efficiency in the sector.

With these actions, the Province says it is supporting Port Metro Vancouver’s goal of maintaining its place as a world leader in supply chain competitiveness and reliability, and as a major economic contributor to the provincial and national economies. This legislation will provide the tools necessary to stabilize the port container trucking sector with higher levels of accountability for companies and a consistent working environment for truckers, helping sustain the Vancouver gateway as a reliable and competitive place to do business.

This legislation is being introduced now to enable a new container trucking commissioner to be in place once Port Metro Vancouver completes its planned reform of the Truck Licensing System. Those reforms will result in a needed reset of the sector to establish a modern and efficient drayage fleet in greater balance with the demands of its customers.

Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Todd Stone said: “Port Metro Vancouver is Canada’s largest port and one of the busiest in North America, and it is vital that operations continue to keep British Columbians working, our economy running and goods moving across the country. We are confident this legislation will establish fair working conditions in this sector as well as allow Port Metro Vancouver to increase its efficiency and reliability as a world-class port.”