Farmers could 'pay the price' of a possible CP worker strike, APAS president says
By Kate Ayers
Staff Writer
Farms.com
Early this morning, Teamsters Canada said it notified Canadian Pacific (CP) Railway that workers will go on strike April 21.
The strike is a result of unresolved negotiations between Teamsters and CP, according to a Reuters article today.
“CP rail and the unions have been in negotiations for a number of months. … Obviously the union is frustrated with the situation, as over 90 per cent of their members asked for a strike mandate,” Todd Lewis, Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) president, said to Farms.com today.
Teamsters Canada, which is associated with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, said it issued the railway company a formal 72 hours notice of intent to strike, Reuters said.
And the strike comes at a difficult time for Canada’s farmers.
“The potential of a strike comes at a time when we already have a grain backlog. Further delays in service due to a strike wouldn’t be a good story for grain producers, that’s for sure,” Lewis said.
This labour strike is “another tired excuse that the railroads have” for transportation delays, he added.
“It’s disappointing and, at the end of the day, farmers are going to pay the price.”
APAS has reached out to the government in an effort to prevent labour disruptions that may affect rail service.
“We’ve reached out through the Crop Logistics Working Group, an industry group that was appointed by Minister MacAulay that speaks to grain transportation issues,” Lewis said.
“A letter has been sent to MacAulay and the federal labour minister asking that back-to-work legislation be enacted as quickly as possible.”
On April 13, CP had yet to reach an agreement with two of its unions, Teamsters Canada Rail Conference – Train & Engine (TCRC) and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), the article said.
To meet the proposed demands of the union bodies, TCRC payroll costs would rise by 24 per cent and IBEW’s would increase by 25 per cent over the next three years, CP said.
In total, the unions represent about 3,360 workers, including conductors, engineers and signal maintainers.