441-00263 (Transportation)

The Government of Canada is committed to free collective bargaining as the basis for sound industrial relations. It respects and has faith in the collective bargaining process and firmly believes that the best deals are the ones reached by the parties at the bargaining table.  To that end, it extends the services of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) to support trade unions and employers in their negotiations and to help them resolve their disputes. The FMCS was established to provide dispute resolution and dispute prevention assistance to trade unions and employers under the jurisdiction of the Canada Labour Code.

While the Government recognizes that a work stoppage can have deleterious effects on third parties, it respects the right of trade unions and employers to strike or lockout, as the case may be, in order to resolve a collective bargaining dispute.  This right is provided for in the Canada Labour Code and the Government respects this right.

In the case of recent collective bargaining negotiations between Canadian Pacific Railway and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, the parties remained at the bargaining table and, with the assistance of FMCS mediators, were able to reach an agreement on March 22, 2022, following a

one-and-a-half-day strike and lockout.  The work stoppage ended with the parties’ agreement to resolve their remaining collective agreement provisions through binding arbitration.  Normal business operations have resumed and will continue during the arbitration period, at the end of which a new collective agreement will be established.

Regarding designating rail service as an essential service, Part I (Industrial Relations) of the Canada Labour Code does not designate any industries as essential, nor does it give the Minister of Labour or the Government the power to designate any services or industries as essential (e.g., by regulation). Instead, section 87.4 of the Canada Labour Code requires employers and unions to maintain any of their activities that are necessary to prevent an immediate and serious danger to the safety or health of the public. If there is a dispute about which services need to be maintained, the parties or the Minister can apply to the Canada Industrial Relations Board to determine which services need to be provided in order to comply with the provision.

In the recent work stoppage at Canadian Pacific Railway, the parties themselves agreed they did not need to maintain any services in order to comply with section 87.4 and the Government respects their decision.