The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) on Aug. 30 filed appeals with Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal challenging the decisions that led to binding arbitration being imposed on workers at Canadian National Railway Co. (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. (CPKC), which the union described as “effectively stripping them of their right to collectively bargain.”
The union filed four separate appeals challenging Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon’s referrals and the Canada Industrial Relations Board’s (CIRB) decision ordering employees back to work at CN and CPKC less than a day after more than 9,000 union members went on strike and both railroads issued lockout notices (GM Aug. 23, p. 1). The appeals argue, among other things, that workers’ charter rights were violated.
“These decisions, if left unchallenged, set a dangerous precedent where a single politician can bust a union at will,” said Paul Boucher, TCRC President. “The right to collectively bargain is a constitutional guarantee. Without it, unions lose leverage to negotiate better wages and safer working conditions for all Canadians. We are confident that the law is on our side, and that workers will have their voices heard.”