The latest developments in the lockout at Canada’s two biggest railways

Canada’s two biggest railways, Canadian National Railway Co. and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd., are preparing to restart operations after the federal government announced it would step in to end a bitter labour dispute with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference union.
Tensions culminated Thursday when the parties failed to agree on a new contract before the midnight deadline, causing the railways to lock out 9,300 engineers, conductors and yard workers.
Here are the latest developments on the rail stoppage (all times are ET):
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6:25 p.m.: Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters is applauding the federal government for sending the labour dispute to binding arbitration.
The industry group says it has called on the Canada Industrial Relations Board to order the trains to move as soon as possible.
It says reduced rail service over the last week has inflicted supply chain problems and it will take days, if not weeks, for things to get back to normal.
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6:20 p.m.: Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. says it’s preparing to restart its operations.
It says more detail about timing will come once it receives an order from the Canada Industrial Relations Board to impose binding arbitration.
CEO Keith Creel says the government has acted to protect Canada’s national interest and the company regrets Ottawa had to intervene.
He says the company looks forward to welcoming back employees and restoring the railway to full strength.
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6:10 p.m.: Canadian National Railway Co. says it has ended its lockout of workers and is to immediately begin a recovery plan.
The company says while it’s awaiting a formal order from the Canada Industrial Relations Board, it made this decision to speed up the recovery of the economy.
It says it’s satisfied the labour conflict has ended but is disappointed a negotiated deal could not be achieved.
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6 p.m.: Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says she’s pleased to see Ottawa take action and direct binding arbitration.
She says each day the labour disruption continues will have “costly impacts on our economy, workers, businesses, families and farmers.”
She says regular operations must resume “immediately” and her United Conservative government will be watching to make sure it does.
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5:55 p.m.: Federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says the Liberal government’s decision to send the railway dispute to binding arbitration sends a message that “being a bad boss pays off.”
He says on social media that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s actions are “cowardly, anti-worker and proof that he will always cave to corporate greed.”
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5:35 p.m.: Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe says the federal government took appropriate action in imposing binding arbitration to end a labour stoppage on Canada’s two national railways.
Moe says on social media the move will ensure Canadian products are again moving to market.
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4:50 p.m.:
Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon says he’ll ask the Canada Industrial Relations Board to impose final, binding arbitration to end a labour stoppage on Canada’s two national railways.
He’s also asked the board to order the railways to resume operations under the terms of the current collective agreements until new deals are in place.
MacKinnon says the collective bargaining process is ultimately up to the companies and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference union, but the lockout is affecting all Canadians.
He says he gave negotiations “every possible opportunity to succeed” until midday Thursday before deciding to act.
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4:40 p.m.: A senior Liberal source says the federal government is planning to intervene in the labour dispute that brought the country’s two largest railways to a halt overnight.
Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon will use the powers under Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code.
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3:35 p.m.: Saskatchewan Opposition NDP Leader Carla Beck says she has spoken with federal Labour Minister Steve MacKinnon, telling him the rail stoppage is disproportionally affecting Saskatchewan’s economy.
Beck says Ottawa needs to ensure all parties stay at the bargaining table along with using every tool to end the lockout and reach a negotiated settlement.
She says farmers are in the middle of harvest and are concerned they won’t be able to get products to market.
Beck says she’s to speak with industry and labour groups, Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew and Alberta Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi.
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3:21 p.m.: Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is calling on the federal government to intervene in the rail stoppage with binding arbitration or by reconvening Parliament to pass back-to-work legislation.
Smith, in a statement, says while her government respects collective bargaining, having both freight carriers shut down at the same time is an intolerable disruption to business and threatens Canada’s reputation as a reliable supplier.
“Each day this disruption continues will have far-reaching and extremely costly impacts on our economy, hurting workers, businesses, farmers and families across the country,” says Smith.
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2:50 p.m.: B.C. Premier David Eby says the rail stoppage is “terrible news,” both for the families of locked-out railworkers and those whose industries have been affected.
He says there have been “massive knock-on effects” for a range of people who rely on rail services, from farmers on the Prairies to B.C. commuters who use the West Coast Express. Eby says “the word devastating is probably and understatement,” and he urged the companies to sit down with the workers “sincerely” to resolve the stoppage and get trains moving while talks continue.
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2:10 p.m.: NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says the confidence-and-supply agreement his party has with the Liberals would end if the minority government introduces back-to-work legislation that hinges on a confidence vote.
Singh says he has made it clear to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that the NDP would never support any measure that attacks working people.
He adds that if resolving the lockout comes down to a confidence vote it would break their agreement.
The NDP signed a political pact with the Liberals in 2022 to support the government on key votes in exchange for progress on shared priorities such as pharmacare.
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1 p.m.: Locked-out railworkers have been marching back and forth across the narrow road leading into CPKC’s head office in Calgary.
A few passing cars honked their horns in support. One man in a white truck yelled out his window “Get back to work.”
Local Teamsters president Bill Merriman said he hopes both sides can go back to the table and come to a negotiated settlement.
“I’m optimistic but I’m also a realist. This isn’t my first rodeo so I know this one’s going to go the distance,” he said.
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12:35 p.m.: U.S. Ambassador David Cohen said his State Department colleagues “have expressed concern” about the ramifications for cross-border trade.
“While the embassy does not take sides or intervene in Canadian labour disputes, we hope for a speedy resolution and encourage all the parties to remain at the bargaining table and to reach a settlement as quickly as possible,” Cohen said in an emailed statement.
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12:34 p.m.: The Mining Association of Canada says the rail stoppages are keeping companies in the sector from transporting products to and from domestic and international customers and suppliers.
The organization says crude and processed mineral products have made up more than half of the total freight volume transported by rail in Canada for the last decade.
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12:30 p.m.: NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh paid a visit to locked-out railworkers on a picket line outside a CN Rail facility in Lachine, in western Montreal.
Singh, who was alongside NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice, greeted the workers and led them in a chant of “So-So-So-Solidarity!” as trucks rumbled by on a busy industrial street.
Singh promised the workers he would fight against what he called “interference” from the Trudeau government in the dispute, including forced arbitration or back-to-work legislation. He was applauded by the workers.
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11:40 a.m.: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government is taking the work stoppages “seriously.”
“We are not taking this lightly, obviously, because Canadians across the country are worried about this,” he said as he left a local manufacturer in Sherbrooke, Que.
Trudeau promised his government would have more to say shortly on what it will do to ensure a quick solution to the conflict.
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11 a.m.: The leader of the federal NDP party says he will not support back-to-work legislation or any interference in the bargaining process.
“CN and CPKC should still be bargaining with Teamsters Canada,” Jagmeet Singh said in a statement.
He added that he thinks corporate giants like CN and CPKC expect the Liberals to “swoop in to help the corporation and hurt the workers with binding arbitration or back-to-work legislation.”
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10:50 a.m.: Canada’s labour minister says he has spoken with his U.S. counterpart about the work stoppages.
Steven MacKinnon says the conversation with Julie Su, the U.S. acting secretary of labour, touched on the importance of the rail sector to both countries’ economies.
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10:30 a.m.: Bargaining between workers and the country’s two largest railways set to resume.
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9:30 a.m.: A group representing 97,000 small- and medium-sized businesses says its members are concerned about not getting essential shipments of aviation gas for forest fighting equipment, manufacturing materials, vehicle parts, retail products and agricultural equipment.
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business says the stoppages will also lead to less availability of grocery and drugstore goods, including baby formula.
Some small businesses have already told the organization they will need to halt operations because they will no longer be able to receive critical materials or meet contractual obligations.
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8:44 a.m.: Ontario’s premier called on CN and CPKC to get back to the table and reach a fair deal.
Doug Ford said in a post on X that the rail shutdown had already cost workers, transit users and businesses across the country.
“We cannot afford to let things get worse,” he said.
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8:20 a.m.: Commuters arriving at Union Station in Toronto are greeted with announcements apologizing for the rail stoppage.
The announcements run every few minutes and advise travellers to visit gotransit.com to learn more about their alternatives and find updates as the situation evolves.
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8:15 a.m.: A group representing 65,000 grain farmers and producers says the work stoppages will inflict “severe” damage on the industry and the broader Canadian economy at a “most critical” time.
With the harvest season upon the country, Grain Growers of Canada says rail transportation is essential for moving crops to market.
It estimates that the initial impact of the dual stoppage will cost grain farmers more than $43 million a day in the first week alone but adds losses could climb to $50 million a day if the actions surpass the one week mark.
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8:04 a.m.: A few dozen workers are rallying outside CN headquarters in downtown Montreal, holding Teamsters Canada flags and banners.
In a speech to the gathering, Teamsters Canada president François Laporte blamed the conflict on the companies.
“They are the ones who should be ashamed,” he told the crowd. “They are taking the entire economy hostage. They are taking the workers hostage, and shame on them.”
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8:01 a.m.: The head of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce urged the country’s minister of labour to resolve the conflict through binding arbitration.
In a statement, Canadian Chamber of Commerce chief executive Perrin Beatty says the federal government had the opportunity to prevent the shutdown, but did not act.
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8 a.m.: TransLink says the labour dispute has pushed it to suspend its West Coast Express service, which travels between downtown Vancouver and Mission City during the weekday rush hours.
The B.C. transit provider added additional bus service to help move customers who rely on the West Coast Express.
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8 a.m.: Montreal transit operator Exo says the work stoppage had made it impossible to offer service on three of its lines.
The lines affected spanned Vaudreuil/Hudon, Saint‑Jérôme and Candiac.
Exo says it is working to set up an alternative bus service as soon as Aug. 26.
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7:29: Many arrived at stations along GO Transit’s Milton line only to learn the rail work stoppage would upend their commute.
Customer care workers stopped commuters on their way into the Cooksville parking lot to tell them about the job action and alternative travel options.
Shuttles were running every 30 minutes to take those at the station to Port Credit’s GO hub, where they could catch a ride on the Lakeshore line.
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7:15 a.m.: GO Transit says its service “may be busier than usual” as the rail work stoppage brings one of its commuter lines to a standstill, upending travel plans for thousands of daily commuters.
The regional transit service for southern Ontario’s Greater Golden Horseshoe region says rail service has been suspended at Hamilton GO Centre and on the Milton line, which cuts through Mississauga to Toronto’s downtown Union Station.
Metrolinx, the provincial agency responsible for GO Transit, has said about 7,500 customers use the Milton line daily and 600 rail customers use Hamilton GO Centre.
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12:16 a.m.: Canadian Pacific Kansas City issues statement calling for the union to accept its offer to resolve the labour dispute with binding arbitration.
The company says it does not believe a negotiated outcome is within reach.
The railway says binding arbitration would end the work stoppage and mitigate further harm and disruption to supply chains and the economy.
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12:01 a.m.: Both companies lock out workers bringing rail traffic at Canada’s two largest railways to a halt.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 22, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX: CNR, TSX: CP)