Teamsters Canada Rail Conference

We operate the trains and equipment, we maintain the track and infrastructures and we coordinate and control the rail traffic. It’s what we do… It’s who we are. We transport the passengers and we carry the goods that keep this country strong and a world leader. We keep the lines open that connect this country, coast to coast and everywhere in between. We are the Teamsters and we are the heart and soul of Canada’s railways. We are 15,000 strong, we are 2/3 of all rail labour and we are growing every day. We work in these companies:

• Nation Railway Equipment
• Hudson Bay Railway
• Goderich-Exeter Railway
• Hallcon
• Algoma Central Railway
• Ottawa Valley Railway
• Carlton Trail Railway
• New Brunswick East Coast Railway
• St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad
• Ottawa Central Railway
• Chemin de fer Matapedia & Golfe
• Southern Railway of Vancouver Island
• Kelowna Pacific Railway
• Burlington Northern Railroad
• Via Rail Canada
• Mackenzie Northern Railway
• Southern Ontario Railway
• Canadian Pacific Railway
• Canadian National Railway
• Bombardier Transportations Canada (Go Transit)
• Agence métropolitaine de transport

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Teamsters: How to join us

The Teamsters Union is made up of 1.4 million workers who are employed in a variety of public and private industries. There are approximately 500,000 retired members of the Teamsters throughout the United States and Canada who maintain their affiliation with the Union and support important issues for working people. Unlike the company, plant or shop where you work, your union is a democratic organization where you and the other members have the right to elect local leaders and decide the policies that will affect you.

Teamsters stand ready to organize workers who want to bargain collectively. Once a contract is negotiated and signed, the Union works to enforce it—holding management’s feet to the fire and invoking contract grievance procedures if management chooses not to. Wages and benefits under Teamster contracts are markedly better than those of non-union employees in similar jobs. Teamster contracts are the guarantors of decent wages, fair promotion, health coverage, job security, paid time-off and retirement income.

The Teamsters Union also performs vital tasks in such areas as pension management, safety & health, community outreach, governmental affairs and communications. For more than a century, the Teamsters have been a public voice for the rights and aspirations of working men and women and a key player in securing them.

Solidarity counts

Company presidents and supervisors have numerous resources available to them to accomplish their goals. They belong to associations and coalitions that help advance their objectives.

Workers, on the other hand, have only their numbers to protect them. And when they work together in unison they can achieve better wages and working conditions.

The Right of Affiliation

Workers do not always know that the right of affiliation is officially recognized by both federal and provincial legislations. Don't forget that your employer may not prevent a worker or a group of individuals from unionizing, nor may they harass or dismiss them for such action.

Three easy steps

To unionize, three steps are necessary:

1. You must discuss it with your co-workers and then contact one of our recruiting agents.
    
2. Contact Teamsters Canada. Then the recruiting agent will meet with you to determine the path to follow to unionize your company.
    
3. Once the second step has been accomplished, the recruiting agent will have you sign membership cards, which will be submitted to your provincial Department of Labour in order to validate your union certification (this step may vary according to the province that you live in).

How to contact us

You have two ways to proceed if you wish to unionize:

	Contact the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference
	Contact Teamsters Canada

In either case, be assured that we will contact you quickly and that you will meet with a recruiting agent who will answer all your questions.