Canada is bracing for a major work stoppage involving two of its major railways, Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) and Canadian National Railway (CN) and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC).
This conflict, driven by unresolved contract negotiations between the parties, threatens to disrupt critical transportation and supply chains throughout the country. With both sides at an impasse over key issues (higher pay, better benefits, predictable work scheduling, etc.), the outcome of this standoff could have far-reaching implications for industries, communities, and the economy at large.
It’s crucial to understand the stakes and potential impacts of this significant labor dispute. In this blog we’ll discuss just that, latest updates and how things got to this point.
The Latest
- As of Thursday August 22nd, CN and CPKC railways officially locked out their TCRC employees, according to statements from both railways.
- Effective Thursday August 22nd at 12:01am, CN issued an embargo for all freight. As Freightwaves reports, CN previously halted refrigerated cargo as of August 15th, as well as Canada – U.S. intermodal embargoes which took effect on August 16th. Important note: CN and CPKC both have routes that run in Mexico, those will not be impacted.
- Government intervention has not yet happened, but on Wednesday August 21st, Prime Minister Trudeau called on the parties to come to an agreement. Labor Minister Steve MacKinnon met with officials with CPKC and TCRC on Wednesday (CN on Tuesday) to further emphasize the importance of the parties reaching an agreement. In addition, industry stakeholders have released statements asking the government to intervene citing disruption to rail service will have significant consequences.
- Ships heading to the Port of Vancouver – one of Canada’s largest ports – have been told to slow down/decrease their arrival times, in order to prevent congestion at the port.
What Led to This Action?
The contract expired December 31st, 2023, and the TCRC members (roughly 9,000) have been working without a contract since. Due to Canadian law, the agreement remains in place until a new deal with new terms is reached.
Since the expiration of the contact, negotiations have been going on for almost a year, with no resolution set. Key issues including pay wages, better benefits, predictable work scheduling, etc., prove to be in the way of an agreement being reached.
At the beginning of March, federal mediators entered the picture to try and assist with the talks. On May 1st, TCRC overwhelming voted yes (98%) to authorize a strike. However, they did not get very far as the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) entered the picture. The CIRB’s role in this was to evaluate whether a strike/worker lockout would impact the wellbeing of Canadians. On August 9th, the CIRB ruled that a strike/lockout would not impact the health and safety of Canadians, though they recognized that it would cause challenges.
After the CIRB ruling, the parties involved were entered into a mandatory cooling off period. This meant neither party could issue a 72-hour notice to strike or lockout, until the cooling off period was finished. Both TCRC and CPKC/CN stated if an agreement was not reached they would issue work stoppage notices, putting August 22nd as the date for any work stoppage action, and that’s where things currently are at.
Looking Ahead
This obviously is an ongoing situation; things undoubtedly will change by hour/day/weekly. Keep an eye on our LinkedIn and weekly newsletters, for additional updates when necessary.
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