News / MSC ship first in line for delays with Montreal dockers set for Sunday strike

Strike action is set to resume at Canada’s largest container gateway, Montreal, after the Maritime Employers Association (MEA) received a strike notice today from the Port of Montréal Longshoremen’s Union, CUPE Local 375.

The 24-hour action will see a complete stoppage of work on port territory, including the Contrecœur terminal, from Sunday at 7am until 6:59am the following day.

But an MEA statement predicted the effects of the coming strike would be felt in the port for far longer.

“We recall that the strike called on 30 September by the union paralysed operations for three days at the Viau and Maisonneuve (Termont) terminals, which represent 41% of port of Montréal’s activities, resulting in lasting consequences.

“The strike that began 10 October, which completely halted overtime in all its forms, is ongoing and continues to cause damage.

“These pressure tactics applied by the union have created significant operational problems, which are in addition to a number of obstacles that are seriously affecting stability and reliability at the port of Montréal, as well as in Québec and Canadian supply chains,” it claimed.

It added that container volumes at Montreal had fallen some 24% since 2022, largely lost to US east coast ports – although ongoing labour relations issues there might reverse that trend.

According to the eeSea liner database, Montreal handled 1.7m teu in 2021 and 2022, which declined to 1.5m teu the following year. This year so far, it has handled 1.1m teu.

Across its terminals, Montreal hosts 12 container services and, of the three recorded vessels currently en route, the first most likely to get caught up in the stoppage appears to be the 5,000 teu MSC Anya, on the carrier’s Montreal Express1 service operated in conjunction with Cosco, OOCL and Hapag-Lloyd, and due to arrive at the Viau Container Terminal tomorrow, with a forecast departure of 28 October.

Today there seemed no sign of an end to the dispute; unions and employers rejected a government proposal this month for a special mediator and the MEA said today that, “after 35 mediation meetings over 15 months, it is clear that the parties are still at square one and at an impasse”.

It is due to meet Canada’s Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service next week.