Legislation designed to stop the 11-day shutdown of container haulage by trucks in and out of the Port of Montreal was introduced by Quebec’s provincial government late last week.

According to the Journal of Commerce, the legislation orders the 1,200 protesting truckers and two unions to cease taking part in all actions that stop, obstruct or diminish transportation of containers to or from the Port of Montreal and any intermodal terminal in the Montreal region.
The legislation calls for offending trucks to be seized and driver’s licenses suspended. Fines run from $160 to $650 for individual drivers, $4,500 to $23,000 for union representatives and up to $82,000 for the Confederation of National Trades Unions, which is the major Quebec labor federation.
The protesting truckers want to join a small truckers union affiliated with the CNTU and to reach collective agreements on wages and working conditions with the companies. They have targeted about 40 trucking companies who refuse to recognize their right to collectively bargain.