A union representing 320 production workers, machinists and maintenance personnel for a boating manufacturing company in Richmond, B.C., say it has averted a work stoppage.

It says it reached a bargaining agreement with Dometic Marine Canada Inc. after a yearlong negotiation process.

Christian Labour Association of Canada Local 501 says, after meeting more than a dozen times and having two mediation sessions with the BC Labour Relations Board, its members took a vote in May and issued a 72-hour strike notice in June.

It says the company responded by issuing a 72-hour lockout notice, but a work stoppage was averted after an arbitrator met with both sides and issued a decision last month.

Union representative Don Murphy called the bargaining 鈥渢he most difficult鈥� negotiation he has been involved in, saying members were looking for large wage increases due to inflation, but the company had seen a downturn in sales.

The union says the new agreement means workers will see wage increases equalling nine per cent over the three years and 鈥渋mproved language concerning shift changes and posting.鈥�

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