Canadian port shutdowns risk more damage to economy: business groups

Business groups are raising concerns about the broad effects of another round of labour disruptions in the transport sector as Canada faces shutdowns at its two biggest ports.

Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters president Dennis Darby says the twin shutdowns in Vancouver and Montreal come at a challenging time as businesses face a year-end crunch, while the U.S. election results have heightened the need to be seen as a reliable trading partner.

Darby says hundreds of millions of dollars in goods are not moving because of the strikes, and that this latest of several shutdowns shows there needs to be a better way to resolve contract disputes.

Pascal Chan of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce says the simultaneous disruptions at the ports means the country is effectively advertising it’s closed for business.

Chan, who is senior director of transportation, infrastructure and construction at the chamber, says in a statement that the last thing Canadians struggling with high living costs need is another trade disruption.

The shutdowns at the ports come after operations at Canada’s two main railways were halted in August until the government stepped in, while B.C. ports and St. Lawrence Seaway were disrupted last year.