Lockout of longshore workers closes Port of Montreal terminals
Lockout of longshore workers closes Port of Montreal terminals. The disruption ran from 2024-11-10 (10 November 2024) to 2024-11-16 (16 November 2024), 7 days, affecting Montreal. Montreal averaged 0.6 calls per day during the event window against an expected 1.1 (-0.6). Montreal averaged 2.9 calls per day during the event window against an expected 4.0 (-28.6%).
Key facts
- Started
- 2024-11-10 (10 November 2024)
- Ended
- 2024-11-16 (16 November 2024)
- Status
- ended
- Type
- Labour action
- Severity
- 2 Moderate
- Scope
- port
- Chokepoints
- None
- Ports
- Montreal
- Lanes
- None
- Countries
- Canada
- Confidence
- high: The lockout, the labour board order and the resumption time come from the employers' association's own dated updates and the union's statement, with consistent reporting by CBC News and a trade outlet.
- First reported
- 2024-11-10 (10 November 2024)
- Severity basis: Port wide stoppage of 24 hours to seven days; longshore work at the Port of Montreal stopped from 21:00 on 2024-11-10 until terminals restarted at 07:00 on 2024-11-16.
What happened
On 2024-11-10 (10 November 2024) the Maritime Employers Association locked out about 1,200 longshore workers at the Port of Montreal from 21:00, after members of Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 375 voted 99.7 percent against what the association called its final offer. Container handling stopped, while the port authority said the Bickerdike, liquid bulk and grain terminals would keep working. The lockout followed an overtime strike from 2024-10-10 and an open ended strike at the two Termont terminals from 2024-10-31. On 2024-11-12 the federal labour minister directed the Canada Industrial Relations Board to order operations to resume and to impose binding arbitration. Work restarted at 07:00 on 2024-11-16 (16 November 2024) under a board order.
Measured effect
Port calls, Montreal
- Baseline (expected)
- 4.0 calls per day
- Observed
- 2.9 calls per day
- Change
- -1.1 (-28.6%)
- Standardised score
- -0.6
- Event window
- 2024-11-10 to 2024-11-16 (7 days)
- Baseline window
- 2024-09-08 to 2024-11-02 (56 valid days)
- Method
- wfm-effect-1.0
- Computed
- 2026-09-16 (16 September 2026), data revision 1:06ff8573d3c2
Source: IMF PortWatch (portwatch.imf.org), International Monetary Fund, using UN Global Platform AIS data. Statistics derived by World Freight Monitor. Terms.
This is a measured change in public data during the event window, compared with a baseline before it. It shows timing, not cause. We describe an event as causing a change only when an official source says so.
Container ship port calls, Montreal
- Baseline (expected)
- 1.1 calls per day
- Observed
- 0.6 calls per day
- Change
- -0.6 (percent omitted, baseline too small)
- Standardised score
- -0.6
- Event window
- 2024-11-10 to 2024-11-16 (7 days)
- Baseline window
- 2024-09-08 to 2024-11-02 (56 valid days)
- Method
- wfm-effect-1.0
- Computed
- 2026-09-16 (16 September 2026), data revision 1:5ddc44278462
Source: IMF PortWatch (portwatch.imf.org), International Monetary Fund, using UN Global Platform AIS data. Statistics derived by World Freight Monitor. Terms.
This is a measured change in public data during the event window, compared with a baseline before it. It shows timing, not cause. We describe an event as causing a change only when an official source says so.
Timeline
- An open ended strike begins at the two Termont terminals at 11:00, following an overtime strike across the port from 2024-10-10. [s1]
- The employers' association submits what it calls its final offer and sets a deadline of 20:00 on 2024-11-10 for a reply. [s1] [s3]
- Members vote 99.7 percent to reject the offer and the association locks out longshore workers from 21:00. The port authority says the Bickerdike, liquid bulk and grain terminals stay open. [s3] [s5]
- The federal labour minister directs the Canada Industrial Relations Board to order that operations resume at the ports and to impose final and binding arbitration. [s6]
- The labour board orders operations at the Port of Montreal to resume at 07:00 on 2024-11-16, with work assignments issued the evening before. [s1]
- Longshore workers return at 07:00 at all terminals. The port authority says clearing the goods waiting at the port and in transit will take weeks. [s4]
Cause
The employers' association locked out longshore workers after members of Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 375 rejected its final offer, in a dispute over pay and scheduling that had run since the collective agreement expired on 2023-12-31. The union said the association would not negotiate and had sought government intervention instead. Attributed by: Maritime Employers Association and Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 375. [s1] [s3] [s5]
Resolution
2024-11-16 (16 November 2024): After the federal labour minister directed binding arbitration, the Canada Industrial Relations Board ordered operations to resume and longshore work restarted at 07:00 on 2024-11-16 at all Port of Montreal terminals, with the previous agreement extended. [s1] [s4] [s6]
Corrections
No corrections to this record as of 2026-09-16 (16 September 2026).
Sources
- [s1] Maritime Employers Association, 2024 Negotiation updates, published 2024-11-25 (25 November 2024), accessed 2026-09-15. Archived copy. (official)
- [s3] CBC News, Port of Montreal lockout underway after dockworkers overwhelmingly vote to reject employer offer, published 2024-11-10 (10 November 2024), accessed 2026-09-15. Archived copy. (press)
- [s4] CBC News, Operations to resume at Port of Montreal Saturday after government orders end to lockout, published 2024-11-15 (15 November 2024), accessed 2026-09-15. Archived copy. (press)
- [s5] gCaptain, Montreal Port Locks Out Dockworkers, Adding To Canada's Supply-Chain Woes, published 2024-11-11 (11 November 2024), accessed 2026-09-15. Archived copy. (press)
- [s6] CBC News, Labour minister sends ports dispute to binding arbitration, orders end to lockouts, published 2024-11-12 (12 November 2024), accessed 2026-09-15. Archived copy. (press)