VANCOUVER SUN — Two days after concluding there was no chance of reaching a deal mediators Vince Ready and Amanda Rogers have checked back in to the dispute between Western Forest Products and striking United Steelworkers, with the power to draft a proposed contract.
According to a report in the Vancouver Sun, Ready and Rogers had been overseeing negotiations between the company and Steelworkers Local 1-1937 during the longest strike in coastal forest history, now in its eighth month.
They pulled out of the talks on Tuesday after concluding the two sides currently have no chance of reaching a deal.
On Thursday morning, Labour Minister Harry Bains re-appointed the pair as special mediators in the collective bargaining dispute.
“This dispute has taken a huge toll on workers and their families as well as the entire coastal forestry community. We want to see everyone get back on the job,” Bains said. “As minister of labour, I have decided to appoint special mediators Ready and Rogers with additional powers under the Labour Relations Code to help the parties reach an agreement as soon as possible.”
Bains said if the parties don’t reach an agreement, the mediators will provide the parties and the minister with recommended terms for settlement which they will have five days to accept or reject. The minister of labour also can make the terms of settlement public.
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