Canada readies ambitious legislation to reform supply chain

A series of federal consultations in Canada this month have laid the groundwork for new supply chain-focused legislation seeking to reduce labor disruption at seaports and other transport modes.

The consultations by the federal government on transportation labor, ports and digitalization lasted mere weeks, reflecting the speed of the current government and its intentions for legislation anticipated to be introduced as soon as mid-June, according to three sources familiar with the matter.

The legislation is part of a larger effort by Prime Minister Mark Carney to double non-US exports within the decade and boost supply chain resilience by investing in ports and curbing freight disruptions.

“They’re moving at the speed of Carney,” said one of the sources, referring to the prime minister’s aggressive approach to reform and investment. The source added that the government’s first meaningful attempt to reform Canada’s labor code in three decades was “unprecedented.”

Still, Canadian labor groups are warning against any attempt to have port workers designated as essential employees, thus crippling their ability to strike and employers’ ability to lock them out.

“Unifor has and will engage in good faith in this flawed process, but we can hear the dog whistles of union-busting weaved throughout the government’s questions and reference documents,” Lana Payne, the union’s national president, said in a statement.  

But one source tied to federal labor relations said the legislation is unlikely to strip the right to strike from organized workers and instead to create a special mediator to guide contract negotiations through bumps and impasses.

The mediator role was one of the recommendations to come out of a federal study on Canadian West Coast ports. Such an individual would get involved in negotiations from the beginning and provide recommendations publicly when negotiations grind down, according to the labor relations source. How much power this mediator would have to force arbitration, however, isn’t yet clear.

The federal study of West Coast ports labor was triggered by a 13-day work stoppage in 2023 at the ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert, which was followed in late 2024 with a 10-day strike and then lockout. The disruptions were two of 16 that have impacted the transportation sector since 2019, according to Canada’s Ministry of Transportation.

The current contract between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and British Columbia employers expires in March 2027, with formal negotiations expected to begin in November, according to the labor relations source.

Increase borrowing limits of ports

Through the supply chain legislation, port employer interests also want to enshrine into law that the ILWU can only negotiate with employers as a group rather than individually. The Canadian West Coast isn’t recognized in Canada’s labor code as a common geography similar to the East Coast with the ports of Halifax, Montral and Saint John.

The union during past contentious negotiation cycles has threatened to complicate contract talks by negotiating with each of the West Coast’s more than one dozen employers rather than collectively with the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association.

Out of the consultations focused on ports, backers hope the legislation that follows will allow ports to increase their borrowing abilities. It costs tens of thousands of dollars and takes at least a year for port authorities to increase their borrowing limits, said Daniel-Robert Gooch, president and CEO of the Association of Canadian Port Authorities.

His group proposes rather than enforcing a strict borrowing limit, a debt-to-income ratio should be imbedded in the constitution, providing flexibility to faster-growing ports. Port authorities also want a freer hand to engage in activities outside their land and waterway such as being able to sell unused, prime downtown acreage, Gooch said.

“If Vancouver is challenged [borrowing for] projects, then surely, just about every other port in the country that is much smaller than Vancouver probably faces the same challenge to a degree,” said Peter Xotta, CEO of the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority.

Fussing over fees

In addition to wanting labor reform, ocean carriers and marine terminal operators want the Canadian legislation to inject more transparency into its leases with tenants, particularly as it pertains to special fees. The Canada Transportation Agency on Feb. 13 dismissed a request by the Shipping Federation of Canada to intervene against Vancouver Fraser Port Authority’s empty container fee.

Gooch, representing port authorities, downplayed how much more transparency is needed in terms of port fees, arguing the current system to challenge these fees is sufficient.

Xotta said that tenants need to be able to understand and challenge fees, but it can’t hamstring the port authority’s ability to make a return on investment.

The federal consultations also addressed potentially repealing the Shipping Conference Exemption Act, a move that ocean carriers and terminal operators support if the limited antitrust exemption allowing operating alliances remains. That protection could be granted by the government via a policy statement, according to one source close to the shipping industry’s thinking.

The consultations tied to digitalization have been focused on harmonizing systems and could potentially lead to legislation requiring the creation of a maritime single window, a digital platform for the clearing of ships, cargo and crews.

This article was originally published in the Journal of Commerce on May 29, 2026.