NL: Reduced Tug Crewing for Oil Tanker Assist

According to a June 24 report from CanadaEast.com, Newfoundland and Labrador's environment minister is playing down concerns about crew reductions on tug boats that guide giant oil tankers in Placentia Bay. Concerns were raised by the Fish, Food and Allied Workers Union set off alarm bells in Placentia Bay, southwest of St. John's. The union complained that Transport Canada allowed North Atlantic to work with as few as two crew onboard tug boats — a captain or skipper and an engineer. But Johnson clarified that two-person tug boat crews are only permitted within the harbor primarily for docking and un-docking of product vessels, according to the report.

(Source: CanadaEast.com)