The Canadian Maritime Employers Association (MEA) has imposed a lockout on striking employees at the Port of Montreal after its "final" offer to longshoremen was rejected.

The longshoremen's union, CUPE Local 375, rejected the deal, continuing a strike at the Termont terminal seeking higher wages, while some workers at other facilities also refused to work overtime to help clear the backlog.

The Energy Department said it regretted the "negative outcome of the vote" by the union and had "no choice but to announce a work stoppage."

The company also said it had again asked the labor secretary to intervene to resolve the dispute as soon as possible. In recent weeks, many economic and maritime players across the country have made the same request and want things to move as quickly as possible."

The "final offer" includes a cumulative pay increase of more than 20 percent over six years and retroactive to early 2024, which the ministry noted would mean an average annual salary of more than C $200,000 (US $143,790) for dockworkers and would also apply to the current pension plan and benefits for Port of Montreal workers.

In a statement, Maersk offered an update on services to the Canadian gateway, noting that CMA CGM is considering arranging for a vessel that will arrive in Halifax later today or tomorrow to unload, and Maersk is also considering a similar decision for its other vessel. Its Barcelona Express service will bypass Montreal and go directly to St. John's for import offloading.

Meanwhile, rail operator CPKC confirmed that it will not accept empty, prepaid or unpaid trains to Montreal "until further notice," and Canadian National Railway has suspended and canceled capacity to the port's inland terminals.

Operations at the Port of Montreal have been suspended since Oct. 31 due to a dispute at two container terminals operated by Termont, which handle about 40 percent of the port's throughput.

According to the eeSea database, there are currently four ships waiting at anchorage and one at berth. The Port Authority said: "Due to the significant decline in cargo volumes, these activities only require 45 longshoremen to complete the tasks on the dock.

It added: "Multiple strikes by dockers... Not only has it impacted operations, but more importantly, public safety and the economy of Quebec and Canada as a whole, leaving thousands of businesses and consumers without essential supplies."