Potential Canadian Rail Strike

WSSA has continued to monitor the potential strike situation in Canada. As of August 9, news reports state that the CIRB/Canada Industrial Relations Board ruled “a work stoppage on Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) would not cause an immediate threat to public health and safety”. This ruling has heightened the prospect of a strike or lockout by August 22.

The decisions on the 9th led to a 10-day cooling off period for further negotiations. CPKC has indicated that it will lock out 3,000 employees at 12:01 am on the 22nd if a deal is not reached. CN has asked for the Canadian government to intervene and impose binding arbitration, but if a deal is not reached, a phased shutdown of the CN network would commence on August 22, resulting in a lockout of 6,000 workers.

The result of a strike would be disastrous for the movement of cargo. The sticking points in the negotiation are reported to be crew scheduling, fatigue management and safety. The sides remain far apart, and this has led to a standstill in the negotiation process. Canadian Federal Labour Minister Seven MacKinnon has stated that he does not want government intervention and wants the two sides to negotiate the deal themselves. 

We will keep you advised as the situation unfolds.

*photo credit boxcar media/shuttershock.com/JOC