Locomotive engineers striking Canadian National Railway (CN) may soon be off the picket line if the federal government can muster support for back-to-work legislation.
Federal Labour Minister Rona Ambrose on Monday introduced Bill C-61, the Railway Continuation Act, for first reading in the House of Commons and urged all parties to support it.
Calling the strike “more than a private dispute” between the Montreal-based railway and the engineers’ union, the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC), Ambrose said it “has serious repercussions for the national economy at a time when Canada’s recovery from the global recession is still fragile.”
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TCRC pickets went up Saturday and talks over the weekend between CN and the TCRC had not produced an agreement that would have brought a quick end to the strike, she said.
Federal mediators had been working with the employer and union for “many months” and spent the weekend trying to find a formula that would allow full rail service to resume, but to no avail, the government said in its release Monday.
Ambrose’s bill, as currently written, extends the terms of the two sides’ collective agreements that expired Dec. 31, 2008.
While Ambrose emphasized in her statement Monday that the legislation is meant to end the strike and the government “will not impose a settlement on the employer and union,” the legislation as written calls for her to appoint an arbitrator. It also calls for binding arbitration on any issues the company and union are unable to resolve.
“Protecting businesses”
The bill, which if passed as written would take effect 24 hours after receiving royal assent, gives an arbitrator 90 days after his or her appointment to come up with decisions on any issues still in dispute, and report to Ambrose accordingly.
Ambrose didn’t say how much time she expected it would take for her bill to make its way through the Commons and Senate, nor did she say whether it was assured of support from any of the three opposition parties.
A statement Sunday by federal Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff urges the Conservative government to “play a more active role in encouraging the resumption of negotiations.”
With CN managers now operating freight trains on a limited schedule, Ignatieff said there’s a need to “ensure ongoing operational safety while protecting businesses and shippers from suffering economic losses.”
In the same party release, the Liberals’ labour critic Maria Minna said her party expects to see renewed effort to get CN and TCRC to “voluntarily return” to bargaining.
“I am disappointed in the failure of the process, which raises serious questions about Minister Ambrose’s efforts to prevent matters from escalating to this point,” Minna said.
The union served 72 hours’ strike notice on CN last Wednesday after the railway made unilateral changes to the engineers’ expired contract.
CN’s changes gave the TCRC members a 1.5 per cent wage hike, but also added a requirement for its engineers to work up to an additional 500 miles per month over what was required in the now-expired contract.
The TCRC stated that CN’s tactics in unilaterally changing work conditions appear designed to avoid real negotiation and force binding arbitration.
Analysts have already predicted a backlog of filled grain cars in the country is likely to result from a strike, which they said may also threaten Canada’s reputation as a reliable grain exporter.
In a letter from CEO Ian White, the Canadian Wheat Board last Thursday urged Ambrose to “be prepared to take immediate action to ensure the uninterrupted flow of grain from the Prairies to our customers around the world.”
Farmers in Western Canada are heavily reliant upon rail to move grain into export position, White said.
