Ministry of Labour Continues to Dither on Rail Strike

Jul 23, 2024

The Wheat Growers Association welcomes the Hon. Steven MacKinnon as the new Minister of Labour. We ask that he move quickly to resolve the pending national rail strike. The Canadian Industrial Relations Board intends to release its decision regarding the Ministerial Referral on the maintenance of activities by Friday, August 9. Strike action may take place 72 hours after the release, pending an extended cooling off period.

“It is unbelievable how naive the previous Minister was, allowing a possible strike to occur during the prairie harvest. We hope that the new Minister understands that farmers depend on grain movement at harvest to get paid at delivery which helps offset harvest costs and inputs for the year. The complacency of the federal government on this file is putting farmer’s financial viability at risk,” stated Daryl Fransoo, Saskatchewan Director.

International customers are relying on “just in time delivery” and strikes that disrupt exports have seen customers choose other countries for their grain products. Fransoo went on to say, “Regaining the trust and loyalty of international customers is very difficult. It’s often forgotten that once a strike ends, it can take months to move the backlog of grain, hurting farmers and communities long after the strike is over.”

The Wheat Growers have written to the previous Minister on two occasions, April 24, 2024 and May 22, 2024, urging his direct involvement to bring a resolution to this pending labour dispute. To date, we have not received a reply from his office.

“It’s not too late to resolve this issue, but time is running out to ensure that the 2024 harvest is not impacted. We urge the Minister to act swiftly in the best interest of Canadian grain farmers, our export markets and the Canadian economy”, closed Fransoo.

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Video: A Farm Song (Busy) | Parody of A Bar Song (Tipsy) by Shaboozey

Lyrics:

My days begin with workin’, Alarm’s at 5 o’clock,
I Fill 5 gallon buckets, The feeders and the troughs,
This five to nine ain’t workin’, why the heck do I work so hard?,
I can’t worry ‘bout health problems, I can sleep in when I’m gone,

One, here comes the two to the three to the four,
Tell em’ ‘buy another cow, we need plenty more’,
Blue jeans are gettin’ dirty, what else could I ask for,
Oh my, more chores

Someone pour me up another shot of sweet tea,
They know me and working hard’s got a history,
There’s another flock of sheep that still needs feed,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,

Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,

I’ve been working pretty stressed but,
I ain’t changing for some cash,
Lord knows that I’m very blessed (More chores),
But I gotta say it’s hard,
Workin’ outside gettin’ charred,
Living out here on the farm, (more chores)

One, here comes the two to the three to the four,
Tell em’ ‘buy another cow, we need plenty more’,
Blue jeans are gettin’ dirty, what else could I ask for,
Oh my, more chores

Someone pour me up another shot of sweet tea,
They know me and working hard’s got a history
There’s another 20 chickens that still need feed,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,

Everybody on the farm getting’ busy,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,

Fun, here on ranch that’s what you can’t ignore,
Might be pretty hard but I love it to its core,
Flannel’s gettin’ dirty, what else could I ask for,
Oh my, more chores (Tell ‘em sing with me)

Someone pour me up another shot of sweet tea,
They know me and working hard’s got a history,
There’s another flock of sheep that still needs feed,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
Someone pour me up another shot of sweet tea,
They know me and working hard’s got a history,
Watching cattle in the dark, don’t miss me,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
(Yeeeeeehaw)
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
It’s the best bro, go get yourself a farm