Federal government now says all truckers crossing border must be fully vaccinated
CBC
All truck drivers crossing the border must be fully vaccinated as of Saturday, regardless of whether they are Canadian citizens or foreign nationals, the federal government said Thursday.
Confusion over the controversial policy has been widespread since the federal government first announced in mid-November that by Jan. 15, all foreign nationals working as truckers would have to be fully vaccinated to enter Canada.
The same announcement said unvaccinated Canadian truckers would be allowed in, but would be subject to quarantine and testing requirements.
On Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Canada Border Services Agency said the federal government was backing down from that commitment and would allow Canadian truckers to enter the country without having to quarantine even if they were unvaccinated or had received only one dose.
Today, the federal government walked back that statement, saying that Wednesday's statement was was "provided in error" and that the regulations outlined in November will stand.
Trade associations on both sides of the border had been pushing for a delay to the restriction, which they say would put additional strain on supply chains amid the latest COVID-19 surge and severe worker shortages.
About 10 per cent of the 120,000 Canadian truckers who cross the border may not be able to work those routes because they haven't been vaccinated, according to the trucking alliance.
The vaccine mandate is already starting to affect trucking operations.
"There are many of our members who have already said they will not be dispatching unvaccinated drivers across the border," said Canadian Trucking Alliance president Stephen Laskowski.
Transport companies never opposed the vaccine mandate, Laskowski said.
"It's the timing of it," he added, citing factors putting pressure on supply chains, such as clogged ports and workers off sick.
The new rule could encourage reluctant workers to roll up their sleeves. One Montreal-based logistics company offered a $10,000 bonus last month to all drivers who received their first vaccine dose by mid-January in the hopes of retaining employees and boosting inoculation rates.
Guy Milette, executive vice-president of the Quebec based fruit and vegetable importer Courchesne Larose Ltd., said the mandate will put pressure on prices and the supply of goods, especially given the time of year.
From "January up to April is the worst of the year and [sees] the highest percentage of imported vegetables," he told CBC News. "So the impact that we're [talking] about today, it's coming in the worst portion ... of the year."