It’s been over a month since Canadian rail workers voted to strike, but there are no picket lines because the federal government made moves in May that paused the proceedings.
Some grain industry stakeholders say that reprieve is not helpful.
“We were expecting a strike to happen on May 22, and then the minister of labour instructed the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) to take a look at maintenance of activities and what should remain essential,” said Wade Sobkowich, executive director for the Western Grain Elevator Association (WGEA).
Read Also
Farming Smarter receives financial boost from Alberta government for potato research
Farming Smarter near Lethbridge got a boost to its research equipment, thanks to the Alberta government’s increase in funding for research associations.
There can be no strike or lockout before the CIRB issues a decision.
Why it matters: The labour dispute between Canada’s railways and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference threatens to disrupt grain transportation.
Sobkowich worries that the grain industry could be without service for a longer period than if the CIRB had not been asked for a ruling.
In a June 11 release, CN Rail echoed that sentiment. The railway said uncertainty about the timing of a labour disruption hurts its employees and the Canadian economy. The request by the minister of labour is adding to that uncertainty, the company said.
Lingering dispute
The two sides have been negotiating since November 2023, a month before the previous collective agreement expired. Talks have stalled over wages, scheduling and fatigue management. At the beginning of May, the Teamsters voted overwhelmingly for strike action. Since then, the two sides appear no closer to settling a contract.
Attempts were made in June to close the gap and CN’s June 6 offer of binding arbitration was rejected by the union.
On June 7, the Teamsters offered the possibility of staggered strikes to lessen the impact of work stoppages, which the railways rejected. On its bargaining update page, CN said such measures would risk extending the strike.
“It is like suffering death by a thousand cuts,” the rebuttal read.
The union initiated another vote June 14 to renew the strike mandate, which lasts only 60 days. The vote is expected to conclude June 29, the day before the union’s existing mandate expires.
There is no indication of when the CIRB will make its recommendations and a strike could be called as soon as 72 hours after it releases a decision. However, in a June 14 update on its website, Canadian Pacific Kansas City said that, based on precedent, it is unlikely the Teamsters would be in a position to strike before mid-July.
Grain uncertainty
Grain industry players say a strike could prove devastating.
“It will be terrible for grain shipping,” said Bruce McFadden, director of research and analysis for Quorum Corporation, which monitors Canada’s grain shipping industry. It will affect more than grain movement, he added.
“It will impact all segments of the industry. We have customers overseas that need a reliable supply of Canadian products and, if they can’t count on it, there’s always a risk of them going to other places.
”It’s a concern that they will not come back to Canada in the same way if they see constant disruptions in the Canadian operations.”
The WGEA is asking the CIRB to consider grain shipments to be essential “for the maintenance and preservation of Canada’s domestic food and feed supply and global food security,” Sobkowich said, adding that grain shipping was deemed essential during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“If it was essential for Canadians during the pandemic, it should be essential now.”
Any suggestion of splitting networks into essential and non-essential service is untenable, according to the railways.
“The railways have said they can’t carve out just a portion of their network like that,” said Sobkowich.
Without that essential designation, grain movement will grind to a halt in Canada if the strike proceeds.
“It will stop all rail movements of grain on both railways at the same time. There is no Plan B,” Sobkowich said. “The only thing grain elevators and all processors can do is start slowing down sales and preparing for a stoppage in the movement of grain.”
The situation punctuates the WGEA’s long-standing criticism about lack of competition in grain transportation, he added.
Sobkowich said a quick decision is critical for the Canadian grain sector because the harvest season begins in August.
“It is crucial that the rail work stoppage be over and the labour agreements resolved by then.”
