Articles
Go to Site Index See "Articles" main page
25th May 2020
EDITOR
Steelworkers, Mosaic strike deal they hope can kick start idled Vancouver Island logging operations

Union, forest firm reach tentative deal to unionize shipping facilities, add regional flexibility

SUSIE QUINN May. 15, 2020 2:33 p.m.NEWS

One of Vancouver Island’s biggest timber firms and its largest forestry union have struck a deal they hope can restart Mosaic Forest Management operations throughout the Island.

United Steelworkers (USW, Local 1-1937) and Mosaic Forest Management have reached agreements-in-principle designed to bring increased collaboration, flexibility and certainty for workers and Mosaic across its South Island and Northwest Bay operations.

The union and company jointly announced on May 12 the pending unionization of Mosaic’s two shipping facilities at Island Terminals (Duke Point) and South Island Logistics facility (Crofton), and a renewed collective agreement at the Nanoose-based Northwest Bay Operation that will run from 2020 to 2025.

With the agreements, USW 1-1937 is also asking for “temporary relief” on federal log export policy for private land, said Brian Butler, president of USW 1-1937.

“Working together with Mosaic on unionizing the shipping facilities also reflects our collective desire for policies that support access to both international and domestic log markets,” Butler said, adding that allowing log exports for private landowners will “kickstart the Coastal forest sector.”

Both Butler and Mosaic president and CEO Jeff Zweig touted stability for workers as another positive to ratifying the agreements.

“This agreement will certainly help to create the conditions for Mosaic to restart production,” Zweig added.

The coastal forestry industry was already in the midst of an eight-month strike with Western Forest Products when Mosaic announced in late November 2019 an early winter shutdown that impacted a further 2,000 forestry workers across coastal B.C. That curtailment was extended on March 10, 2020.

“Poor market conditions have persisted longer than anticipated and have been exacerbated by the impact of the coronavirus on global supply chains,” Mosaic president and CEO Jeff Zweig said in a statement.

Union members must still ratify the agreement-in-principle with Mosaic.

“These are tough times and we have heard our members loud and clear. We have worked extremely hard with Mosaic to deliver a set of mutually beneficial changes to respond to our members’ needs and address legacy issues, all of which are subject to ratification by our members,” said Richard Arnason, second vice-president of USW Local 1-1937.

https://www.pqbnews.com/news/steelworkers-mosiac-strike-deal-they-hope-can-kickstart-idled-vancouver-island-logging-operations/