HOULTON, Maine — Canadian Border Services Agency workers reached a deal late Friday night with the government regarding better pay and improvements to workplace culture, ending a strike that could have threatened delays when the border reopens to U.S. citizens on Monday.
Border employees had begun a planned work-to-rule strike earlier that morning, which meant that workers would stay on the job but only do the minimal amount of work required by law. But a final round of negotiations that had begun Thursday continued throughout Friday and ended that night, lasting around 36 hours in total.
The four-year agreement calls for an average annual increase of 2 percent per year, and the creation of a national joint committee to tackle problems with workplace culture, which employees said fostered widespread harassment and discrimination.
“We are relieved that CBSA and the government finally stepped up to address the most important issues for our members to avoid a prolonged labour dispute,” said Chris Aylward, national president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada labor union, which represents CBSA employees. “The agreement is a testament to the incredible hard work and dedication of our bargaining team who worked through the night to reach a deal.”
The deal clears the way for uninterrupted commercial and human travel across the U.S.-Canada border when it reopens on Monday, ending 16 long months of closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The United States will continue to keep its land border closed at least until Aug. 21, although Canadians may fly to the U.S. from designated airports after producing a negative COVID-19 test.
In order to travel across the border into Canada without having to quarantine, U.S. citizens will need to be fully vaccinated and download the ArriveCAN app to show proof of vaccination status, as well as produce a negative COVID-19 test taken 72 hours prior to arrival.
Despite an increase in COVID-19 cases in the U.S. and concerns regarding the Delta variant, Canada’s reopening date is still on track, Canadian Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam said during a Thursday press conference.
The United States recorded 127,000 new COVID-19 cases that day, mostly among unvaccinated Americans, while Canada recorded just 736 cases on its most recent daily count.