CN
Locomotive Engineers Forced to Initiate Strike Action Published: November 25th 2009
Source: Teamsters Canada Rail Conference
CN
Locomotive Engineers Forced to Initiate Strike Action
Published: November 25th 2009
Source:
Teamsters Canada Rail Conference
Ottawa November
25, 2009 – Late yesterday, the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC), served
notice to initiate strike action at Canadian National Railways (CN) effective
00:01 local time, Saturday, November 28, 2009.
The decision to service strike notice came after CN notified the Union they
planned to arbitrarily alter the terms and conditions of the working conditions
for approximately 1700 locomotive engineers.
CN advised the TCRC that it plans to incorporate a 1.5% wage increase coupled
with the requirement to have locomotive engineers work an additional 500 miles
per month over the amount required by the present Collective Agreement. This
change would require some of locomotive engineer to work 7 days a week with no
time off and cause layoffs within the ranks of the conductors, trainmen and
yardmen.
The parties have been assisted by Federal Mediators since August in the hope of
renewing their Collective Agreement, which expired on December 31, 2008, but
stalled after CN declined to continue negotiations during their last bargaining
session. The TCRC has offered CN, through the mediators, to withdraw/suspend
their strike notice if CN would withdraw/suspend their notice of the change to
the Collective Agreement and get back to the table to negotiate.
“Canadian National Railways has forced us to service strike notice after they
informed us of the unilateral change to the terms and conditions of the
Collective Agreement effectively locking out our members” said Daniel J.
Shewchuk President of Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC), which represents
CN locomotive engineers, conductors, trainmen and yardmen, “It is obvious to us
that CN is counting on the Federal Government intervention to settle the issues
rather exploring solutions to a negotiated agreement.”
“As advised by the company, these changes are the tip of the iceberg and we
cannot sit idly by while CN simply changes the terms and conditions of the
Collective Agreement. Our members deserve much better than that.” said Shewchuk.
The TCRC is also in the process of filing a complaint of bargaining in bad faith
against CN as the situation continues to deteriorate.
Teamsters Canada Rail Conference represents 12,000 railway workers with major
railroads and shortline railroads across Canada and affiliated with the 125,000
members in Teamsters Canada and 1.4 million members in North America with the
International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
Information:
Daniel J. Shewchuk, President, Teamsters Canada Rail Conference
www.teamstersrail.ca