Rail strike looms as major risk to Canadian economy; Feds convene meeting of all parties
UNSPLASH/Dan Loran
Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon is convening a meeting between management and unionized workers at Canada’s two major rail companies as the country’s newly appointed labour czar tries to thwart a strike that could halt the movement of goods across the country.
MacKinnon, who was appointed to the position two weeks ago, made the announcement on social media platform X.
"Canadians entrust these parties with operating key parts of our supply chains. They must be keenly aware of the responsibility that comes with that trust,” MaKinnon said in the post.
A rail strike now looms as potentially the biggest near-term risk to the nation’s economy. Volume at the nation’s rail businesses is already down due to the uncertainty, as businesses look for alternative options to transport goods.
CN Rail and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Limited (CPKC) are in talks on a new collective agreement with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, which represents almost 10,00 workers at the two companies.
The Teamsters have rejected calls by the two companies to enter into binding arbitration. The union claims CN and CP are demanding a wide range of concessions around crew scheduling, hours of work, and fatigue management.
Workers have voted to give the union a strike mandate if negotiations fail.
The three parties are waiting for a decision from the Canada Industrial Relations Board on whether some shipments would be considered essential services. Workers can’t walk off the job for at least 72 hours after that board announces its decision, which is expected on Aug. 9.
On an earnings call this week, CPKC CEO Keith Creel said the two sides still remain far apart.
“It's most probable that we'll have a work stoppage, both railroads,” said Creel, who predicted it will come later this month.
The threat of cross-Canada rail disruptions comes almost exactly a year after the end of a three-week strike at ports in British Columbia that disrupted merchandise shipments totaling $10 billion - from fertilizer to cars.
Businesses at the time expressed concern the strike not only had a direct impact on the economy, but undermined the nation’s reputation as a reliable trading partner. A rail strike could potentially be even more broadly felt, and corporate Canada bracing for another bout of reputation damage control.
