CALGARY -- Barricades at a fuel station in Carseland were temporarily removed Sunday so area farmers could fill up their vehicles.
Blockades at the Federated Co-operatives Limited refinery in Regina, and at a fuel station in Carseland, southeast of Calgary, have been in place for several days as the company and union officials negotiate.
Metal fences have been put up for what the union says is a safety measure against “aggressive” truck drivers, looking to fill up.
Local farmers and ranchers say they have been put in the middle of a dispute between workers and a company in a different province.
“I just don’t think it's right in what they’re doing,” said Danny Warrack, owner of Warrack Grain and Cattle Carriers Ltd.
“My trucks haven’t been able to get in to get diesel, they’ve been having to go to Strathmore, which is kind of an inconvenience because you’ve got the fertilizer plant there, and three grain elevators around here.”
Dozens of unionized workers have been camped outside the fuel terminal since Jan. 24.
Some 760 members were locked out of the Saskatchewan refinery on Dec. 5, 2019.
Union members are on the picket line fighting for pension pay, something the company was possibly looking at changing.
The union says both sides returned to the bargaining table on Friday -- but have yet to make a breakthrough.
United We Roll for Canada, a massive trucking convoy that calls itself pro-Canadian energy, lead a small convoy of trucks and local farmers to the fuel station in Carseland on Sunday.
Union members opened the gates to allow them to fill up.
“Anyone pulling up, we are more than happy to explain our situation,” said Union member Derek Emperingham.
“(I) hope that they understand where we’re coming from, and (we’ll) let them in and fuel up."
The barricades were lifted without issue.
"We went and talked to them, understood their issues and they’re understanding, maybe hearing it from us that they haven’t heard from anyone else that you’re really stifling the farmers out here,” said Glen Carritt, with United We Roll for Canada.
The group made headlines after more than 150 trucks left Red Deer last February, destined for Parliament hill, spreading a pro-energy message. Their aim was to get more resource projects constructed with Ottawa scrapping contentious Bills C-69 and C-48.
Ian Donovan farms in Mossleigh and says he’s uses the cardlock station to fill up his grain trucks.
“The last week I’ve been driving through here, they won’t let you through the gate,” said Donovan.
He says he’s pleased the members changed their tune.
“You gotta learn to crawl before you walk, so we’ll consider this a small step," he said.
