THUNDER BAY -- Two-hundred-and-twenty-five members of the United Steelworkers union have ratified a new contract with the Lakehead Terminal Elevators Association.
The three-year collective agreement provides for wage increases of two per cent each year, retroactive to last February.
It covers employees of three companies belonging to the Lakehead Terminal Elevators Association—Richardson, Viterra and Superior Elevator.
Steelworkers' representative Herb Daniher says the agreement ratified on Monday was reached after the intervention of a federal mediation and conciliation officer.
Pointing to the hiring of 50 new employees recently, Daniher said his members are working in a very positive environment these days.
He said the Port of Thunder Bay seems to be increasing its share of the grain-handling business, with deregulation of the industry seeing the operators become more competitive.
"It's not like the old days. We don't have the same capacity as we did previously. But even though we are not as big as we are, it's still a really critical component of Thunder Bay's economy. Sometimes people forget about us, but we're still a force to be reckoned with," Daniher said.
