Today was the first day the vaccine mandate has come in to effect for truckers crossing the U.S. – Canada boarder entering Canada.
This week Canadas government has flip flopped on its policy with potential to disrupt the supply chain even more and drive inflation higher says experts.
The federal government’s rhetoric on vaccine responsibilities mandate for truck drivers, according to the chairman of a major Canadian trucking union, has thrown the industry into confusion.
“With the news circulating on the 13th, and no clarification or correction in messaging… many carriers then dispatched some unvaccinated drivers into the U.S. to cover loads that needed to be delivered,” said Millian.
Starting today all American truckers entering Canada will be required to be vaccinated and the unvaccinated will be turned around. For Canadian truckers coming back to Canada there is no requirement for them to be vaccinated but they will need to isolate
On Wednesday media was reporting, after receiving criticism from trucking associations, the Liberals backed down on the mandate, claiming that it would significantly disrupt Canada’s supply system and result in a larger shortage of supplies across the country.
“If the message provided late Wednesday was made in error, why did it take officials over 16 hours to release a statement correcting the error?” asked Millian.
“This 16-hour period of silence has thrown many drivers’ lives into upheaval and will leave some having to quarantine at home for 14 days as a result of an erroneous message from government officials.”
With the mandate in effect, truckers who are not vaccinated along with their transport goods will be turned away from the border if they can’t prove they’ve received at least two COVID-19 vaccines.
“We already have a fractured supply chain, and if we damage that, the supplies that we need for our own health and safety – we’re going to see a shortage,” said Millian.
Canadian Trucking Alliance President Stephen Laskowski echoed Millian’s remarks, saying that the mandate will “definitely have a negative impact” on how goods are brought to market.
“There isn’t one aspect of the supply chain that won’t be impacted by this measure,” Laskowski said.
