Unifor, Canada’s largest private sector union, has filed for conciliation in its negotiations with a major Class 1 Railroad in the country, Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC). The union also filed for conciliation with Canada’s other railroad, Canadian National (CN), in late September.
The union, representing thousands of workers between the two railroads, said contract talks had reached an impasse. The filing of a Notice of Dispute with Canada’s Labour Minister generally means the government will appoint a conciliation officer to assist in negotiations.
“This is a crucial moment for our members at CPKC, who deserve meaningful progress on the issues that matter most,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “We entered bargaining ready to address the persistent challenges our members face, but the employer’s lack of urgency has left us with no choice but to seek assistance through the conciliation process.”
Unifor Local 101R began negotiations with CPKC in early October to address key issues such as work ownership, job security, and poor labor relations that have severely impacted the working environment. Despite Unifor’s commitment to resolving these concerns, CPKC’s failure to address these fundamental issues prompted the union to file for conciliation.
The development comes as the latest challenge on the labor front for CPKC and its rail network that spans from Canada to Mexico which it acquired when Canadian Pacific merged with Kansas City Southern to form CPKC.
In August, the railroad company along with CN, faced a threat of work stoppage by the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference Union in one of the biggest service disruptions in the country. That work stoppage began when CP and CN locked out 9,300 workers following months of talks that failed to produce new contracts. Canada’s federal labor board stepped in to impose binding arbitration to avoid a total supply chain breakdown between the Teamsters union and the railway.
