Chaos at the border was avoided when Canada’s border workers settled on a new agreement with the federal government just a couple of days before a huge influx of arrivals was expected.
As of 09AUG, fully vaccinated Americans may enter Canada for non-essential travel without having to quarantine or undertake Day 8 tests.
As Open Jaw reported, border crossings like Pearson Airport warned travellers that the expected surge in arrivals from the U.S. would lead to delays in the arrivals process. YYZ authorities said travellers should expect an arrivals process to take up to three hours.
And that was before Canada’s border workers voted on a strike mandate last week.
It took effect early morning on Friday, 06AUG. Since CBSA and other border workers are deemed ‘essential’, they did not actually walk off the job. Instead, they implemented a ‘work to rule’ campaign, which, as CBC reports, “left long lines of semi-trailers and passenger vehicles idling for hours at some of the country's busiest international gateways.”
The job action painted a picture of full-fledged chaos at the border Monday when Americans flooded north across the border.
After 36 straight hours of negotiation, a tentative deal between the federal government and the Public Service Alliance of Canada, which represents 9000 CBSA employees, was reached late Friday.
It came after just one day of job action, and just over 48 hours to go before the border reopened to Americans.
"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," national president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, Chris Aylward, said in a statement.
So while it went down to the wire, when Canada’s border reopened to Americans today, it was staffed by border workers operating at their usual pace. Delays due to high volume are still expected, but at least they are not compounded by a work to rule campaign.
“It has been a long time, neighbor”
Over the weekend, American media outlets lauded the imminent border re-opening, although interestingly, often failed to point out that while Americans may now enter Canada, it's a one-way street. The U.S. land border remains closed to Canadians.
CNN announced the news with a headline, “It has been a long time, neighbor,” and a comprehensive FAQ to help Americans navigate the new Canadian regulations to cross the border.
USA Today invited readers to “Follow live coverage of Canada's border reopening here,” when the border reopened. The publication also recounted stories where “families reunite, couples return to empty properties” as some of the first Americans in well over a year crossed into Canada just after midnight Monday morning.
