Last night CP rail issued a 72 hour lockout notice to the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference giving notice of its plans to lock out employees if the two sides can't come to an agreement on a new contract deal or binding arbitration.
The move means that close to 3000 CP Rail employees could be off the job as early as Sunday morning.
For weeks now we have seen numerous farm organizations, companies, manufacturers, grain shippers and more raising concerns about the devastating impact a rail strike could have.
CCA President Bob Lowe says they are very concerned about the potential impacts of a rail strike on the ability of beef producers to feed their cattle, particularly feedlots.
As of February 1, 2022 there were 1.1 million head of cattle on feed in Alberta and Saskatchewan.
He notes with the drought and the lack of feed production, a potential rail strike would be devastating.
"It is imperative that essential services are not interrupted, including the movement of agricultural products by rail. We're running on imported corn from the U.S. to feed the cattle herd and feedlot sector. There are different numbers of what we need a week, somewhere around eight train loads of corn a week. Just to keep us even."
Will Lowe, President of the Saskatchewan Cattle Feeders Association, says a potential strike could result in a humane animal welfare issue, as producers are caught in the crosshairs:
"Cattle feeders with the drought of 2021 have been importing 80 per cent of our feed requirements or a good percentage of our feed requirements from the U.S. That corn is coming in by train, anywhere from eight to ten train loads per week. That's the number that's been put to me is about 80 to 100,000 metric tons of corn."
The Alberta Wheat and Barley Commissions says a potential CP Rail strike would have a devastating impact on farmers.
Alberta Barley chair Tara Sawyer says Canadian railways are lifelines for western Canadian farmers and this potential strike poses serious threats to the success of our upcoming growing season which is just weeks away.
"Railways are a critical link in the supply chain as farmers rely on their service to receive crop inputs, including fertilizer and crop protection products."
Alberta Wheat Commission chair Greg Sears says past rail strikes have resulted in devastating effects on farmers, as the economic losses are often passed down the value chain to primary producers.
"Additionally, a rail disruption will immediately result in backlogs that will hurt Canada’s reputation as a reliable grain supplier to our international buyers."
The Western Grain Elevators Association also raising concerns, with Executive Director Wade Sobkowich saying the move would have devastating impact on the entire agriculture value chain.
Fertilizer Canada calling for a swift resolution saying a work stoppage during the crucial spring seeding season would have crippling effects on the ag industry.
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