Rail dispute: CN union members return to work Monday

Ottawa: CCRI on Saturday decided that Canadian National (CN) employees will return to work on Monday morning.

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• Also Read: CN employees strike from Monday?

This The decision It is eagerly awaited as the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) dictates the outcome of this labor dispute.

The CN workers union filed a 72-hour strike notice on Monday. So it was cancelled.

Teamsters Canada, which represents more than 9,000 workers, indicated before the decision that it would appeal the decision to federal court in the event of a denial, which it did.

“This CIRB decision sets a dangerous precedent,” Paul Boucher, president of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, said in a statement.

Workers' rights have been curtailed by Ottawa, according to him.

“Now big businesses have to shut down operations for a few hours, causing a short-term financial loss and the federal government steps in to break the union,” he added.

Although Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon instituted binding arbitration that ended the rail lockout, the dispute is far from over.

Photo from AGENCE QMI archives

Mr. MacKinnon asked the independent CIRB tribunal to extend the collective agreements and end the labor dispute, ordering the immediate return of workers.

According to an expert, the CCRI has to decide that this is not necessarily a good thing.

“Here, the legislature orders the judiciary to do something,” Mr.^e Claude Gravel, Labor Law Lawyer. “Already, it raises very important legal questions.”

According to him, CCRI is in a less than ideal position.

“He should say to himself: “Am I an independent court? […]Do I agree to accept a political request to handle a dispute?”, he explained.

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On Friday, bosses and the union held talks for nine hours.

Locomotive drivers, mechanics and marshalling yard workers may demonstrate from the beginning of the week.

For its part, Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CKPC) also halted work on Saturday.