Engineers, conductors and signal maintainers who’d been poised to walk off the job at Canadian Pacific Railway almost two weeks ago will instead continue business as usual until at least May 26. The Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) this week informed CP and two of its employees’ unions — the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) […] Read more
Voting scheduled for CP employees on verge of strike
POET unseats ADM as top global fuel ethanol maker
Chicago | Reuters — Privately held, U.S.-based POET has overtaken industry pioneer and global grain merchant Archer Daniels Midland to become the top ethanol producer in the world, the companies told Reuters. ADM had been the biggest ethanol maker since the U.S. began requiring refiners to mix billions of gallons of biofuels into the nation’s […] Read more
Monsanto product to deactivate dicamba residue in sprayer tanks
Chicago | Reuters — Monsanto is launching the first product that deactivates a controversial herbicide inside spraying equipment after it is used, the company said on Tuesday, its latest attempt to prevent unintended crop damage associated with dicamba. The new product aims to stop farmers from accidentally applying traces of dicamba on crops that cannot […] Read more
CTA to bump up Prairie grain freight cost index
Fuel and infrastructure improvements are expected to push up the cost of railroading and, in turn, the index guiding how much money Canada’s big two railways get to keep from hauling Prairie grain in the next crop year. The Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) on Wednesday announced it will set the volume-related composite price index (VRCPI) […] Read more
Grain handle drops in CN’s first quarter
Reduced traffic in grain, fertilizers and petroleum, against increased costs from “challenging operating conditions,” ate into the first-quarter bottom line for Canadian National Railway (CN). Montreal-based CN on Monday booked net income of $741 million on total revenues of $3.194 billion for its quarter ending March 31, down from $884 million on $3.206 billion in […] Read more
Strike action postponed at CP
Conductors, engineers and signal maintainers at Canadian Pacific Railway won’t be walking off the job Saturday, but will instead vote soon on a contract offer their unions recommend they reject. Federal Labour Minister Patty Hajdu on Friday agreed to a request from CP to have the Canadian Industrial Relations Board administer a ratification vote on […] Read more
CP talks said stagnating as strike deadline looms
Montreal/Vancouver | Reuters –– Canada’s biggest rail union said no progress had been made in negotiations on Friday with Canadian Pacific Railway to reach a deal before a Saturday deadline as worries about a potential strike weighed on the country’s crude oil prices. If the two sides fail to reach a deal, a strike is […] Read more
Regulatory change urged to help expand rural broadband
A parliamentary committee is calling on the federal government to use legislative tools to help shore up broadband access for rural and remote areas of Canada. The House of Commons’ standing committee on industry, science and technology, chaired by Vancouver area Liberal MP Dan Ruimy, on Tuesday released its report and recommendations for meeting federal […] Read more
Grain handle down, costs up in CP’s Q1
Increased traffic in potash and intermodal containers offset an eight per cent drop in grain carloads in Canadian Pacific Railway’s first quarter, against higher costs and “challenging” conditions. Calgary-based CP on Wednesday booked net income of $348 million on gross revenues of $1.662 billion for the quarter ending March 31, down from $431 million on […] Read more
Two unions set to strike Saturday at CP
Unions representing engineers, conductors and signal maintainers on Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) have served formal notice to strike starting Saturday. The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC), which represents about 3,000 CP engineers and conductors, served strike notice late Tuesday, as did System Council No. 11 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), representing over […] Read more
