CALGARY — Unifor has filed for conciliation in its negotiations with Canadian Pacific Kansas City, following a path the Canadian union has also taken in its contract talks with Canadian National.
The union, which represents more than 1,200 mechanical workers at CPKC, said contract talks had reached an impasse. The filing of a Notice of Dispute with Canada’s labor minister generally means the government will appoint a conciliation officer to assist in negotiations.
“This is a crucial moment for our members at CPKC, who deserve meaningful progress on the issues that matter most,” Unifor National President Lana Payne said in a press release on Tuesday, Oct. 29. “We entered bargaining ready to address the persistent challenges our members face, but the employer’s lack of urgency has left us with no choice but to seek assistance through the conciliation process.”
Unifor Local 101R announced on Oct. 8 that it had opened negotiations with CPKC, saying it sought to address issues such as job security, labor relations, and contracting out of work.
Railroad spokesman Patrick Waldron told the CBC in an emailed statement that CPKC “is and will remained focused on, and committed to, arriving at a negotiated outcome that is in the best interest of its employees and their families.”
Unifor filed for conciliation in its negotiations with CN on Sept. 27, just three days after it opened those negotiations [see “Union requests conciliation …,” Trains News Wire, Sept. 28, 2024]. Three conciliators were appointed for those negotiations on Oct. 8; the conciliation period runs through Dec. 2.
