Sask. mining industry concerned as union serves CN Rail with 72-hour strike notice and CPKC stoppage continues

Saskatchewan's mining industry is concerned about the Teamsters union's 72-hour strike notice, which was served to Canadian National Railway (CN) Friday morning, hours after it had said workers would return to the job. 

The strike notice comes after months of increasingly fraught contract talks between Teamsters Canada Rail Conference union and CN and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC).

Both companies locked out their 9,300 engineers, conductors and yard workers just after midnight Thursday after failing to reach deals with the union by a Thursday deadline. CPKC's 3,500 workers, including workers in Regina, went on strike at the same time.

The unprecedented work stoppage prompted federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to refer the dispute to the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) to impose biding arbitration under Section 107 of the Canada Labour Board. 

The CIRB now has to decide how best to settle negotiations and whether that requires binding arbitration.

Charles Smith, an associate professor at the University of Saskatchewan, studies the politics of labour movements. In an interview on Friday, Smith said the union is trying to pushback against employer concessions, but the situation has left people with questions. 

"There's too much uncertainty right now and the rules are not clear in terms of what the CIRB can actually do and I think that non-clarity is adding a lot of uncertainty to the dispute but also to the workers involved."

The union is asking for better wages and working conditions. The federal government intervention, Smith said, doesn't necessarily help the cause. 

"The unions have the legal ability to strike. That wasn't covered in the government's orders, so I think they're trying to make sure their issues are put on the table," he said.

The week-long back-and-forth between the federal government, the three sides, and the CIRB has also left Saskatchewan shippers in a limbo. 

The Saskatchewan Mining Association said in a media release on Thursday it "applauds" the federal government for taking "action that supports the broader national interests" and that the association was looking forward to the expeditious resumption of Canada's rail service. 

After the Teamsters' strike notice, that sentiment has dampened. 

"We're very disappointed," said Pam Schwann, Saskatchewan Mining Association president. "We think there's a bigger picture at play here and we're disappointed that this has not been resolved."

The mining industry could lose out on contracts to other foreign shippers if the work stoppage continues for longer, she said, adding the disruption could also have an impact on mine site workers.