FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JULY 28, 2005

Conservative Labour Critic Ed Komarnicki meets with Parties in Vancouver Port Truck Strike

Vancouver - Federal Conservative Party Labour Critic, Ed Komarnicki, MP today met with parties involved in the truck strike at the Vancouver Port and called for the Federal Government to be more actively involved in seeking resolutions to the dispute.

“This is a confrontation that has been building for years,” said Komarnicki. “Long before this strike, the federal government should have, in cooperation with the BC government, been working towards long-term solutions, for the sake of both sides in this dispute, and as well, for the thousands of businesses across Canada that have been affected by the shutdown of the Port.”

Komarnicki acknowledged the complexity of the issue, involving approximately 1,200 independent truck drivers contracting work with 50 – 60 separate shippers and brokers, with no clear federal or provincial jurisdiction, which underscores the importance of in-depth participation by a wide range of stakeholders to resolve the issues.

“The Federal Liberals have the resources of government and should have been a facilitator in resolving the many issues facing the stakeholders, long before this blew up. Instead, the government did nothing for years and, after the fact, when the problem escalated, they appointed a mediator who has the unenviable job of resolving what has become a very angry dispute,” Komarnicki said.

Komarnicki met with officials from the Port of Vancouver, and members of the Vancouver Container Trucking Association (VCTA) and has spoken with lawyers and negotiators from both sides of the dispute. Komarnicki stated, “This is a complex and multi-layered situation that requires in the short term a resumption of all port activities, and in the long term a resolution of the issues faced by shippers, receivers, truckers and the port.”

“The federal government must use bring these parties together to ensure that stability and reliability is brought back to the port. The Conservative Party has demonstrated its willingness to get involved to resolve this dispute, its time the federal Liberals did the same,” said Komarnicki.

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