At 5:30pm Saskatchewan time, the 7400 port workers who have been on strike for 12 days had the option to return to work after reaching a tentative agreement.

The four-year deal between the BC Maritime Employers Association and the Longshore Union was reached with assistance of a federal mediator. The mediator submitted a proposed settlement which was agreed to by both parties. Ratification votes will be held in the coming weeks. The strike—which started July 1st—has disrupted the movement of $500 million dollars of good per day, including potash and pulse crop shipments from Saskatchewan. The two biggest stumbling blocks in reaching an agreement were wages and future job security in light of potential automation at the ports.

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) welcomes the settlement and hopes the backlog can be cleared as quickly as possible. However, that could take several weeks or even months.

The CFIB says the strike at the Ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert was extremely costly and says the federal government should consider making ports an essential service.