Container companies, Port of Vancouver make new pitch to owner-operators

VANCOUVER (Aug. 12, 1999) — With their work-stoppage at the Port of Vancouver entering its third week, owner-operators are mulling over a new offer from 19 container trucking companies that includes a 35% pay hike.

The owner-operators, who want compensation for delays due to congestion at the port, rejected an offer last week that would have raised standard return trip rates by $50, or 30%, plus a possible “congestion premium” of $15 per half hour wait in excess of two hours.

“This new offer would increase their revenue, on average, by about 35% to, in some cases, as much as 40%,” said Victor Leginsky, a lawyer who represents the trucking companies. The offer expires at 4:30 p.m. local time today.

Meantime, Vancouver Port Authority (VPA) chief Norman Stark said if a resolution is not forthcoming quickly, “the Port will seek other avenues to protect the interests of our customers.”

For its part, the VPA announced a plan to introduce a new licensing program for container trucking companies and independents that do business in Port Vancouver.

To obtain a permit, the trucking companies would agree, “like any of VPA’s construction vendors, to pay fair wages to their employees/contractors. To complement this licensing program, terminal operators have agreed to establish a gate appointment system.”

VPA-licensed trucks would be allocated time slots to pick up cargo, terminals would operate longer hours, and cameras would be set up at port terminals to allow trucking companies and dispatchers to view gate and traffic conditions in real time on the Internet to monitor the situation.

Port officials said more than 7000 containers remain stranded on the docks of Port Vancouver’s three container terminals. Each container that passes through Port Vancouver is worth $1000 to the Canadian economy.