Canada rail labor union to hold new strike ballot

TORONTO (ICIS)–Canadian rail labor union Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) will hold a new strike vote because an earlier mandate for industrial action will expire on 30 June, it said in an update.

In early May, about 9,300 unionized conductors, train operators and engineers at rail carriers Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) voted for a strike as early as 22 May.

However, Canada’s federal labor minister then referred the matter to the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) for a decision about a strike’s impacts on public safety and health.

A legal strike or lockout cannot occur until a CIRB decision, and it is unclear when that decision will be made.

TCRC said in its update that under Canadian labor law, the strike mandate from May is set to expire on 30 June.

In order to be in a position to strike once the CIRB makes its decision, TCRC will therefore conduct a new strike ballot, beginning 14 June and running until 29 June, it said.

WHEN COULD A STRIKE START?
As the CIRB process is ongoing, the board has extended the deadline for affected industry trade groups to make submissions from 31 May to 14 June.

After the CIRB decision, TCRC would have to give 72 hours’ notice before a strike can begin.

The CIRB may grant the rail carriers’ request for a 30-day extension, starting from the decision date, before the 72-hour notice can be served.

The rail carriers have estimated that given the CIRB process, a strike will not start before mid-to-end July.

The parties do not have to wait for the CIRB process to run its course. Instead, they can continue bargaining and reach an agreement at any time.

However, TCRC said that since the strike was referred to the CIRB, the rail carriers “have completely withdrawn any commitment to negotiate”.

The rail carriers have proposed binding arbitration, but TCRC has rejected this.

IMPACT ON CHEMICALS
The uncertainties around the timing of rail labor disruption are affecting Canadian chemical, fertilizers and other manufacturers.

Canadian chemical producers rely on rail to ship more than 70% of their products, with some exclusively using rail, while in the fertilizers industry about 75% of all fertilizers produced and used in Canada is moved by rail.

In the run-up to potential strikes, producers need to prepare, longer strikes can force them to curtail production or shut down plants, and after a strike ends it can take weeks for normal operations to resume.

The impacts may be limited to some extent as the CIRB can order that rail shipments of certain essential products, for example water treatment chemicals, be maintained during the strike.

Thumbnail photo source: Canadian National