Union Launches Campaign Against BC Ferries’ Contract for Chinese-Built Vessels, Urging Domestic Manufacturing
https://www.theepochtimes.com/world/union-launches-campaign-against-bc-ferries-contract-for-chinese-built-vessels-urging-domestic-manufacturing-5899023?ea_src=ca-frontpage&ea_med=medium-3
A B.C. workers’ union has launched a campaign opposing plans to build four new B.C. Ferries vessels in China and advocating for domestic firms to be prioritized, saying the deal with the foreign shipyard will result in lost Canadian wages, tax revenue, and economic opportunity.
The BC Ferry and Marine Workers’ Union has launched a campaign called “Build Them Here,” encouraging citizens to ask the provincial and federal governments to keep shipbuilding contracts in Canada. The union says the recent decision by BC Ferries, a publicly owned ferry operator, to hire a Chinese state-owned shipyard to build four new vessels means public money is being used to support economies abroad instead of creating jobs locally.
“This isn’t just about ferries. It’s about whether public money should create good jobs here or be used to prop up foreign economies. It’s about a generation of young workers being told there’s no place for them in B.C.’s future,” reads the campaign’s description.
“We’re sick of watching contracts, paycheques and pride go overseas while we’re told to wait for trickle-down scraps.”
The union represents more than 4,500 workers across the province. As of publication time, about 500 people have signed a form to contact their local MLA, and 340 have registered to voice their concerns to their MP.
The union says that while BC Ferries’ contract with the Chinese shipyard has been signed, the issue isn’t over, as the ferry operator plans to build more vessels in the future and “there’s still time to influence decisions.” Continue…