MONTREAL – Canadian National Railway Co. is set to resume mediated talks with Teamsters Canada to avoid a second strike within a year, this time by 2,700 train conductors, yardsmen and traffic co-ordinators.

The labour contract talks, which have been proceeding since May, have stalled over non-monetary issues and a relationship that the government-appointed conciliation commissioner labelled “dysfunctional.”

The union began by meeting with the mediator on Wednesday and then planned to meet company negotiators later in the day or on Thursday.

The workers’ contract expired July 22 and either side can give 72-hours notice for a strike or lockout.

The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference said it wants to avoid a strike but is frustrated by the Montreal-based railway’s unwillingness to negotiate.

“We have no intention of serving notice to go on strike. If the company changes the terms and conditions of our collective agreement, depending on the nature of the change, we’ll judge ourselves accordingly,” union spokesman Bryan Boechler said outside the railway’s downtown headquarters.

Boechler said he was pessimistic that the “last-chance meetings” will succeed in breaking the deadlock.

The union said it’s returning to the negotiating table with an “open attitude” but “will not compromise with respect to health and safety issues.”

One of the big issues for the Teamsters is scheduled hours of work for its members, instead of being constantly on call.

The union says the company wants to eliminate brakemen on all trains and all road crews to do yard work.

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Despite the insistence shown by the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) to negotiate, a strike or lockout at Canadian National (CN) could be inevitable. Either party could now serve 72 hours notice to commence action.

The TCRC represents some 2,700 train conductors, yardmen and traffic coordinators who have been without a work contract since July 22.  CN requested conciliation after only six days of negotiation, starting the countdown to a strike/lockout situation.  CN’s continued unwillingness to negotiate has been very frustrating.

Last-chance meetings are being held this week in an attempt to break the deadlock, but union negotiators are pessimistic as to the results that will eventually arise from these discussions.

“We are returning to the bargaining table with an open attitude,” explains Bryan Boechler, spokesperson for the Teamsters Union in this matter. “However, we will not compromise with respect to health and safety issues.”

Ballots were sent to TCRC members, and the results that came back were clear: 90% voted in favour of a work stoppage if no agreement can be achieved.

The report filed by the conciliator some time ago has had no effect whatsoever on the course of the bargaining process as the conciliator basically rejected the union’s concerns regarding the rail carrier’s intention to increase the workload of employees already working up to eighteen hours per day. Furthermore, the extremely high number of grievances pending between the employer and the union points to a culture that is quickly deteriorating.

The Teamsters Union is concerned by the prospect of reliving what the locomotive engineers went through in December 2009. Let us recall that CN then broke off talks and forced the union to strike (which at once triggered the federal government to threaten to enact special back-to-work legislation). Afterward, an arbitrator was appointed to the case.

“A strike is inevitable if CN decides to go ahead and unilaterally modify the working conditions that impact the health and safety of our members,” warns Mr. Boechler. “We cannot and will not sit idly by and allow the company to jeopardize the lives of the workers and the general Canadian population.”

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After only a few days of bargaining, it seems that the Canadian National Railway Company (CN) is bent on provoking its workers to launch a strike, regardless of the insistence of the union to pursue discussions.

Negotiations broke down last Friday and the company refuses to offer its formal proposal to the workers’ Negotiations Committee. Moreover, no further dates of discussions are scheduled and the company refused an extension of the conciliator’s mandate.

In fact, CN wants to use the Labour Code to impose a settlement on the parties rather than bargain by mutual agreement with the union of some 2700 conductors, yardmen and traffic coordinators. CN workers are represented by the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC).

The union believes that Canadian National wants the Government to quickly assign an arbitrator to the case, thus disabling the normal bargaining process. These discussions started last May, as the collective agreement ended in July.  There were only six days of actual bargaining before CN requested conciliation

“We have hardly begun discussions before the employer wants to end them,” explains Bryan Boechler, spokesperson for the TCRC Negotiations Committee. “And we all know that it takes two to tango.”

The health and safety of the workers and of the population are at stake

The rail company is proposing modifications to eliminate all provisions pertaining to the rest period by arguing that they are outdated. The workers could therefore be forced to work 24 of 32 hours, and then re-start this cycle 8 hours later. The union believes that this proposal will increase the risk of accidents.

“Let us be clear: the most important issue in these talks is the health and safety of the workers and of people living near railroads, explains Bryan Boechler, spokesperson for the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference. “My worries are based on my experience on the field, not on a bogus theory put forth by some managers of the company.”

The conflict looming on the horizon therefore strangely resembles the prevailing situation between the locomotive engineers and the company in December of 2009.  CN had wanted to unilaterally change the working conditions of the locomotive engineers, which brought about a strike. The health and safety of the workers and of the public were also at the core of the dispute.

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