Autoport workers go on strike in Halifax

Nearly 240 workers at a vehicle processing plant in Eastern Passage, NS, have gone on strike after negotiations between the union and the company failed to reach an agreement.

Unifor Local 100 workers at Autoport began striking at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday. Union members rejected a tentative agreement earlier this month and announced a strike for Friday.

In a press release, Unifor said Autoport plans to hire replacement workers.

“The use of strikebreakers has been proven to prolong labor disputes, and the company’s actions have only made it more difficult to reach an agreement,” said Lana Payne, Unifor national president, in the press release.

Payne said the planned use of replacement workers shows that the federal government needs to legislate on the issue.

Autoport, a subsidiary of CN, processes and ships nearly 185,000 vehicles annually, according to the union.

Emergency plan

“Today, Autoport has enacted its contingency plan for its Eastern Passage facility to protect supply chain continuity. Operations will continue without interruption for as long as necessary,” said Tom Bateman, a CN spokesman, on behalf of Autoport.

Unifor said negotiations with the employer began in September and continued until the end of the strike.

Under a collective bargaining agreement for the Eastern Passage facility that expires in December 2023, workers at the facility will earn between $22.30 and $33.06 an hour after the probationary period.

“While this was not the outcome we had hoped for, we remain committed and fully prepared to go on strike to defend the rights and fair treatment of our members,” Cory Will, president of Unifor Local 100, said in the press release.

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