October 23, 2014 - 11:15 AM
VICTORIA - The B.C. government is introducing new laws that it says will bring labour stability to the container trucking industry at Port Metro Vancouver.
The legislation would bring in rate regulation for the industry, addressing a long-standing complaint by truckers about companies that undercut driver wages.
The new laws would also see the establishment of an independent container trucking commissioner who will take over responsibility for all trucking licences.
The legislation follows recommendations by mediators Vince Ready and Corinn Bell after several months of consultations with the trucking sectors and the federal and provincial governments.
The government says the legislation would provide the tools needed to stabilize the port's container trucking sector with accountability for companies and a consistent working environment for truckers.
About 1,300 union and non-union container truckers withdrew their services earlier this year complaining of long wait times to pick up and drop off containers and the undercutting of rates.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2014