Freight on Canada’s two largest railroads, including their local lines, is moving again.
Late in the afternoon on Saturday, August 24, the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) sent the dispute between Canadian National (CN), Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC), and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference.
Wages, job security, and guaranteed earnings are the major issues in the negotiations between CN, CPKC, and the Teamsters.
Earlier in the week, contract talks had broken down and both CN and CPKC locked out the 10,000 Teamsters members, effective Thursday, August 22. Later on Thursday, MacKinnon announced the CIRB would begin the arbitration process. Following that announcement, both CN and CPKC began preparing to get trains moving again.
However, on Friday, Aug. 23, Teamsters members continued the work stoppage at CPKC. The Teamsters had also served CN with a 72-hour strike notice, saying that a new strike against that company would begin at 12:01 am Eastern Time on Monday, Aug. 26. The Teamsters challenged the CIRB, arguing that the Minister of Labour did not have the authority to request binding arbitration.
The CIRB announcement on August 24 means that the two railroads can now get trains and goods back on the rails, and that the Teamsters members must return to work as of Sunday, August 25.
Locally, the CN spur line from Glen Robertson to Hawkesbury was affected by the work stoppage, along with the CN main line crossing Stormont, Dundas, and Glengarry. The CPKC mainline across Stormont, Dundas, and Glengarry was also affected.
The Québec and Gatineau Railway line through Lachute and Calumet was not affected by the labour dispute.
