OTTAWA — Canada’s labor minister has ordered port employees back to work in British Columbia and Quebec after negotiations between unions and terminal operators reach an impasse. “I have directed the Canada Industrial Relations Board to order that all operations and duties at the ports resume and to assist the parties to settle their collective

Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon has put an end to the work stoppages at Quebec and British Columbia ports by ordering binding and final arbitration. MacKinnon said on Tuesday the negotiations had hit an impasse and the economic and reputational damage to Canada as a reliable trade partner was in jeopardy.

Employers at ports in British Columbia will lock out unionized supervisors, a move that threatens to freeze trade on Canada’s West Coast and add to the country’s supply chain disruptions.

OTTAWA — Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon is intervening to end the work stoppages at ports in both British Columbia and Montreal.