Transit services to resume after federal government halts national rail strike

Services are set to resume Monday morning at Canada’s major railways as the federal government issued an official order to return to work.

The federal government’s bid to put an end to the ongoing labour dispute between CN Rail and the Teamsters Union was approved by the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB).

The CIRB issued the official order on Saturday, imposing binding arbitration between the companies and the Teamsters union.

Metrolinx told CHCH News that the Milton Line and Hamilton GO station services will resume Monday morning. The CPKC says they will restart railway operations at 12:01 a.m. on Monday.

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Federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon requested that the federal labour board begin the arbitration process on Thursday, citing economic concerns and trade relationships.

The union says it will “lawfully comply” but plans to appeal the decision in federal court.

“This decision by the CIRB sets a dangerous precedent. It signals to Corporate Canada that large companies need only stop their operations for a few hours, inflict short-term economic pain, and the federal government will step in to break a union. The rights of Canadian workers have been significantly diminished today,” said Paul Boucher, President of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference.

Boucher says that the “Trudeau Liberals have chosen to side against the middle- and working-class Canadians,” calling the decision one that abandons their platform of progressive values.

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The CPKC said in their own online statement that they will also comply with the order, and will meet with parties Thursday to resolve the final binding interest arbitration.

In a statement of its own, the employer, CN Rail, said that it’s disappointed an agreement couldn’t be reached at the bargaining table.

“The company is satisfied that this order effectively ends the unpredictability that has been negatively impacting supply chains for months,” it said in an online statement.