Saskatchewan Trucking Association wants vaccine mandates lifted at land borders

Government and local officials, and business owners alike have made different adjustments, mandates and processes in response to COVID-19 and border mandates aren’t any exception.

Recently reported by Saskatoon that with “the COVID-19 vaccination mandate for international air travelers coming to an end… many truck drivers are asking when cross-border land restrictions will be dropped”. Many drivers’ only reason to get vaccinated is to keep their jobs. With this new mandate, many feel truckers are being excluded from these types of decisions that make an impact on everyone. The vaccine mandate at the Canada-U.S. border came into effect in January and it caused major backlash amongst trucking groups, leading to protest in Ottawa, Canada.

The Saskatchewan Trucking Association wants the Canadian and American governments to remove the mandate to help with supply chain issues and driver shortages. “We’re short about 23,000 truck drivers right now across the country. So, with these policies, it’s simply just making it more difficult for trucking to attract the labour that we need” as stated by manager of policy and government relations, Jordan Ewart. Click here to here more of their thoughts and concerns.