The Co-op Refinery Complex and Unifor union leadership are back at the bargaining table in Regina, according to the union.

Neither party will be releasing details of the bargaining until there is an agreement or talks break off.

On Friday morning at about 9:25 a.m. CST, Unifor members removed the fences that had been blocking access to the Co-op Refinery Complex since last week.

The removal of the barricades was a condition the refinery put in place before returning to bargain. Earlier this week, Unifor national president Jerry Dias said the members would bring down the fences if the refinery bargained in "good faith" and that they would follow the court injunction limiting pickets time to hold up trucks to 10 minutes.

Pensions are a key issue in the labour dispute. Unifor said the company was trying to gut the pension plan, whereas the refinery said the changes are fair and needed to keep the company competitive.

The two parties first reached an impasse in September 2019. The union issued a 48-hour strike notice on Dec. 3 and were locked out on Dec. 5.

The lockout is now in its 57th day.