(The following story by Nicolas Van Praet appeared on the Montreal Gazette website on March 16.)
MONTREAL — The strike that has plagued Canadian National Railway Co. for nearly a month could soon be over after the company said it struck a tentative deal with union negotiators.
CN, Canada’s largest railway said it reached a three-year agreement with leaders from the Canadian Auto Workers union.
About 5,000 cargo loaders, mechanics and clerical workers remain on strike. They’re expected to vote on the deal early this week.
Under the agreement, workers will receive a return-to-work bonus of $1,000 as well as wage hikes of three per cent for each of the three years of the deal, the union disclosed in a statement.
CN also agreed to cancel its recently instituted discipline system for three years, the CAW said. The system was the major sore point for striking workers, many of whom complained that they were heavily penalized or suspended without just cause.
Several workers picketing yesterday in front of CN’s headquarters in downtown Montreal said they believe strikers will vote to accept the deal this time after rejecting an initial agreement last month.
“Nothing is perfect but we won some big points, especially on the discipline issue,” said Denis Phaneuf, a dispatcher who’s worked for the company for 26 years.
“Most of the most litigious points have been resolved,” added Louis Têtu, a pipefitter with 25 years of experience at CN. “This is what we wanted.”
Têtu nevertheless warned that workers are prepared to strike longer.
“We were ready for a lengthy walkout. I was getting my summer sunscreen ready.”
Workers will also get shift differential pay and improved pensions under the new deal, reached yesterday morning after an all-night negotiating session.
CN spokesperson Jim Feeney said the railway was pleased the agreement might trigger the end of the labour dispute.
Employees have been on strike since Feb. 20. Their previous contract expired Dec. 31.
The railway has continued to operate throughout the strike, using managers and retirees as fill-ins. Major shippers have reported they’re dealing with the delays.
Others, like importers-exporters and specialty crop growers, reported larger impacts on their business, including temporary layoffs.
Most of the delays occurred at the railway’s so-called intermodal terminals, where containers are transferred between trucks and trains. CN’s intermodal traffic fell by 46 per cent the first week of the strike, compared with the comparable week the year before. In Week 2 of the walkout, traffic fell 30 per cent compared with the year-earlier period.
CN and the CAW also said they reached a tentative deal covering 400 truck drivers who transport containers from intermodal yards to customers nearby. Those workers were not on strike.