Canadian Border-Agent Union Reaches Tentative Deal to Avoid Strike

By Robb M. Stewart

OTTAWA--A union representing more than 9,000 Canadian border agents has reached a tentative deal that would avoid a strike that threatens to disrupt trade with the U.S.

Full details of the proposed contract with the federal government are set to be disclosed Thursday after a ratification kit is supplied to members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the Customs and Immigration Union.

Sharon DeSousa, national president of the Public Service Alliance, said the tentative settlement was a victory for members.

The union a day earlier set Friday as a new strike deadline, with members set to begin a work-to-rule campaign unless a new deal was agreed before midnight Thursday, which could have threatened billions of dollars in trade daily across the Canada-U.S. border. Late last week, the union postponed strike action that was set to begin June 7 to allow negotiations to continue with the help of a mediator.

If the tentative agreement is ratified, it would apply to about 11,000 employees.

The Treasury Board of Canada, which handles collective-bargaining talks with public-sector unions, in a statement said the government and Public Service Alliance reached an agreement after hours at the bargaining table that is fair for workers and reasonable for Canadians. The renewed collective agreement will include wage increases and other benefits, it said.

The proposed deal covers employees of the Canada Border Services Agency who are primarily involved in the planning, development, delivery or management of the inspection and control of people and goods entering Canada. The bulk of border agents are deemed essential workers and so are barred from walking off the job under Canadian labor rules, but they can begin work-to-rule action, as they did in the summer of 2021.

Canadian government data show that about $2.6 billion of U.S.-Canada trade crosses the border on a daily basis.

Union-represented border agents have been without a contract for more than two years. Among its demands, the union had called for wage parity aligned to other law enforcement agencies across Canada, stronger job security and access to telework options.

Write to Robb M. Stewart at robb.stewart@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 11, 2024 12:19 ET (16:19 GMT)

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