Rail workers, companies still bargaining as midnight deadline for possible rail stoppage looms

 
Talks to avert a railway work stoppage appear to be going down to the wire.
Union and management negotiators remained at the bargaining table just hours ahead of a 12:01 a.m. Thursday deadline to avert a strike or lockout that could hammer the Canadian economy and scramble commutes for thousands of GTA residents.
“All parties remain at the bargaining table. Our union is making a good-faith effort to reach agreements before midnight,” said Christopher Monette, spokesperson for Teamsters Canada, which represents 9,300 workers at CN Rail and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC).
Conductors, engineers and yard workers at both railways are in negotiations, as are rail traffic controllers at CN.
The companies have said they’ll lock workers out if there’s no deal before the deadline. The union can also strike against CPKC.
A work stoppage would mean GO Transit’s Milton line wouldn’t be operating, nor would trains operating out of its Hamilton station.
A spokesperson for Metrolinx suggested commuters who usually use the Hamilton GO station could instead use the West Harbour or Aldershot train stations, or take the Route 16 bus.
Commuters who usually take the Milton line are encouraged to take local transit, or GO’s Lakeshore West or Kitchener train lines as an alternative.
At a press conference in Alberta, federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland urged both sides to reach a deal, saying a work stoppage would be an act of “self harm” to the national economy.
“Let’s as a country, be united in sending a very clear message to the companies and to the union, it is not acceptable for us to do this act of self harm to the Canadian economy,” Freeland said. “You have the responsibility to get a deal done. We are expecting you to rise to that responsibility and get a deal done.”
Ontario Premier Doug Ford also urged both sides to keep talking, saying it would hurt businesses, and also exacerbate an affordability crisis.
Ford also said the companies shouldn’t lock their workers out.
“Threatening to lock out workers is not the answer,” said Ford. “We need everyone to treat each other with respect and be laser focused on getting the deal done.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau echoed those sentiments.
“My message has been straightforward. It is in the best interest of both sides to continue doing the hard work at the table to find a negotiated resolution,” said Trudeau. “Millions of Canadians, workers, of farmers, of businesses right across the country are counting on both sides to do the work and get to a resolution.”
Trudeau has been facing increasing calls from business groups on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border to act pre-emptively to ensure there is no work stoppage.
Wednesday, a coalition of Canadian business associations called on federal labour minister Steven MacKinnon to refer the dispute to the Canada Industrial Relations Board for binding arbitration.
“The Government of Canada has a responsibility to protect the Canadian public and maintain national security, and it is time to act decisively to fulfil that obligation,” said the statement, from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, and the Business Council of Canada.
In an interview, the head of the association representing Canada’s manufacturers said a work stoppage would be catastrophic for the sector, and for the country’s broader economy.
“This will be a catastrophe. It’s going to be messy,” said Dennis Darby, CEO of Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters. “So many companies have just recovered from COVID, and this is the last thing they need.”
Already, some companies were starting to announce temporary shutdowns in anticipation of a stoppage. B.C.-based lumber processor Conifex said Wednesday it would cut back to one shift a day starting Monday.
Earlier this week, shipping giant Maersk stopped accepting Canada-bound goods that need to be transferred by rail.
A report released Wednesday by Moody’s Analytics estimated that a stoppage would cost the Canadian economy $341 million per day, and could push inflation back up.
“A disruption to this crucial element of Canada’s transportation network would cripple the nation’s supply chains and threaten to reignite inflationary pressures,” Moody’s economist Brendan LaCerda wrote.
While there would be some short-term economic damage from a stoppage, there’s also a longer-term reputational risk, said Pedro Antunes, chief economist at the Conference Board of Canada.
Hurting supply chains in Canada and the U.S. could put this country’s reputation as a reliable trade partner in jeopardy, Antunes said. “This could put some of those trade relationships at risk.” 
Federal labour minister Steven Mackinnon was in Calgary Wednesday, speaking to mediators, as well as negotiators for CPKC and Teamsters. Tuesday, he was in Montreal speaking with negotiators from Teamsters and CN.
Tuesday, MacKinnon posted on X that he’d be delivering a simple message to both sides.
“Get a deal at the table. Workers, farmers, businesses and all Canadians are counting on it,” MacKinnon wrote.
Tuesday, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Canadian Chamber of Commerce issued a joint statement calling on the government to act.
With files from Stephanie Levitz and Robert Benzie