Federal Labour Minister Steve MacKinnon on Tuesday proposed the appointment of a special mediator for a 90-day period in a bid to solve the ongoing labour dispute at the Port of Montreal.
MacKinnon said that there would be no strike or lock-out during the deadline negotiation period, according to a post on X.
Talks between the Maritime Employers Association (MEA) and Montreal Longshoremen’s union remain in a deadlock over wages.
The parties will have to submit responses to the Labour Ministry no later than Friday, Oct. 18, the MEA said in a statement.
The strike has impacted the Viau and Maisonneuve terminals, which account for about 40 per cent of the port’s container traffic.
The Montreal Longshoremen’s Union did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
— Reporting for Reuters by Gnaneshwar Rajan in Bengaluru
