(Calgary) More than 9,000 workers at Canada’s two major rail companies could be on strike or locked out starting Thursday, disrupting supply chains that many industries rely on.
The union representing thousands of workers at Canadian Pacific Railway Kansas City (CPKC) said it has served a 72-hour strike notice on the railway company.
The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference issued a press release stating that if the parties fail to reach a last-minute agreement, workers will walk off the job as of 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time on Thursday.
Shortly after the union’s statement, Canadian National Railway (CN) issued a notice that it intended to lock out workers on the same date unless a settlement or binding arbitration is reached.
The company says no significant progress has been made despite collective bargaining over the weekend.
Unless there is an immediate and definitive resolution to the labour dispute, CN will have no choice but to continue the gradual and phased closure of its network, which would result in a lockout.
Excerpt from a CPKC press release
Both CPKC and Canadian National Railway have suspended shipments in anticipation of possible work stoppages involving 9,300 workers at both railways.
On Thursday, federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon rejected a request from CN to impose binding arbitration, saying he wanted the company to negotiate in good faith.
The union responded to CN’s announcement Sunday in a news release accusing the company of being “willing to jeopardize the Canadian economy and hold supply chains hostage to improve its bottom line.”
A CPKC spokesperson referred The Canadian Press to earlier statements. The company said Friday it was committed to negotiating in good faith and reiterated a standing offer to resolve the issue through binding arbitration.
“As CPKC continues to move as much freight as possible ahead of a potential work stoppage, we are taking steps toward a safe and orderly shutdown of rail operations in Canada,” the company said in a statement Friday.
The CPKC had previously served notice of a lockout on the union for 12:01 a.m. Thursday.
The union said it was forced to serve notice of a strike on the company to protect workers.
“We do not take this decision lightly, but the reckless actions of the CPKC have forced our hand. By unilaterally locking out our members and changing the terms of collective agreements, they are depriving them of essential protections,” said President Paul Boucher in the statement.
CPKC spokesman Patrick Waldron said the company disputes the union’s claim that CPKC is unilaterally changing the terms of collective agreements.
In its statement Friday, the company said that for its train and locomotive workers, it is “focused on a three-year, status quo-style contract renewal with competitive wage increases that are consistent with recent agreements with other rail unions and maintain the status quo on all work rules.” The company said the offer “is fully consistent with new regulatory rest requirements.”
For rail traffic controllers, the company said it had offered a renewed deal that would provide competitive pay increases.
On Sunday, about 10 hours before the union released its statement on the strike notice, MacKinnon posted on the social network X that the two railways were continuing to negotiate with the union alongside federal mediators.
According to the Railway Association of Canada, rail lines move more than $1 billion worth of goods every day. More than half of the country’s exports travel by train.
With information from Christopher Reynolds