Months-long forestry strike on north Island ends after collective agreement ratified

Published 3:30 pm Tuesday, February 24, 2026

A more than eight-month strike that halted production at the La-kwa sa muqw Forestry Limited Partnership (LKSM) operation north of Campbell River has come to an end after a collective agreement was reached last week.

On Tuesday (Feb. 24), the LKSM announced the agreement was reached last week with the United Steel Workers Local 1-1937 (USW). It was ratified by USW members and approved by the LKSM board of directors on Feb. 23.

“Our members did what they set out to do: to protect USW work from being eroded by non-union employers,” said Brian Butler, President of USW Local 1-1937 in a statement. “They also achieved the coast forest industry pattern agreement that was set between USW Local 1-1937 and Western Forest Products Inc. in January of 2025. We are awed by their strength and proud of their achievement.”

The collective agreement features wage increases of 19 per cent and 22 per cent for production and trades, along with various monetary and non-monetary improvements aligned with the coastal forest industry.

“The company is pleased that an agreement has been reached, and with the outcome,” said LKSM Operations Manager Greg DeMille. “We are all looking forward to seeing everyone get back to work as quickly as possible.”

Last month, both parties issued a joint statement stating they had reached a tentative agreement, which was subject to a ratification vote by USW members and approval by the LKSM. At the time, the USW said it believed it had negotiated an “excellent collective agreement,” which significantly addresses the members’ issues.

During the strike, the most contentious issue was over what the union described as LKSM’s demand to hire non-union contractors for work currently done by USW members on site. The union said this includes work performed by both USW members working directly for LKSM and USW members working for contractors.

Both parties reached the collective agreement with help from the BC Labour Relations Board.

The LKSM partnership is made up of the Tlowitsis, We Wai Kai, Wei Wai Kum and K’ómoks First Nations all members of the Nanwakolas Council and Western Forest Products.

In March 2024, the Nations completed an agreement to acquire a 34 per cent interest in a limited partnership with Western, valued at $35.9 million. This partnership includes assets and liabilities from Western’s former Mid-Island Forest Operation, such as TFL64.