The union representing more than 700 supervisors stuck at British Columbia ports said it will go to court to fight for their right to bargain through collective agreements.

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Ship & Dock Foremen Local 514 issued a statement Tuesday afternoon following an announcement by Labor Minister Steven Mackinnon that he plans to end the labor impasse by ordering binding arbitration.

“We are at a complete stalemate and the path forward is unclear,” Mackinnon said at a news conference in Ottawa. “The duration of the disputes is unclear.”

The BC Maritime Employers Association locked out dock supervisors after the union gave a 72-hour strike notice.

Union leaders have said they had planned to initiate industrial action by refusing to work overtime, before the employer took the more drastic step of completely shutting down operations at all British Columbia ports.

Frank Morena, president of ILWU Local 514, alleges that the BCMEA blocked workers in an attempt to force the federal government to intervene.

“Christmas came early for port employers and instead of getting a lump of coal for their bad behavior (refusing to negotiate, a large-scale lockout and then shutting down mediation this weekend), Labor Minister MacKinnon is giving them gave a huge Christmas gift: a back to back. work order and forced arbitration,” Morena said in a statement.

“It is a huge insult to our union, to unions and to the collective bargaining rights guaranteed by the Charter.”

He went on to say that the union will challenge its bylaws in court to protect its members’ right to reach an agreement through collective bargaining.

A labor lawyer who spoke to CTV News said that if the BCMEA were to block workers from forcing arbitration, the measure might not work as planned.

“Be careful what you wish for,” said Sundeep Gohkale.

He said there is a chance that a federally appointed arbitrator could give workers the concessions they seek when it comes to protecting jobs from automation.

“I don’t think you can see it in its entirety right now,” Gohkale said. “You have to wait until the arbitration decision comes out to fully understand whether the strategy ultimately worked or whether it failed.”

It will be up to the Canadian Industrial Relations Board to comply with the order of the Minister of Labour.

Given the looming court challenge, it is unclear when shipping through British Columbia’s ports could actually resume.

Meanwhile, the labor dispute continues to disrupt more than $800 million a day in commerce.

“It couldn’t happen at a worse time. We are at the beginning of a very busy holiday season,” said Bridgitte Anderson, president and CEO of the Vancouver Board of Trade.

“Many small and medium-sized businesses depend on those shipments passing through the port to fill their shelves.”

A calculator on the VBOT website estimates the economic impact of the lockout so far amounts to nearly $6.5 billion, and counting.