The Teamsters union that represents workers at both of Canada’s largest freight railroads has filed the lawsuits it promised challenging the orders that forced employees back to work and got the trains moving again, the union announced Friday.
The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference doesn’t want to let the precedent stand that the government can block a strike and take away a union’s leverage in negotiations. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government stepped in to this contract dispute after both Canadian National and CPKC locked out their workers Aug. 22 because of fears about the widespread economic consequences of letting the trains so many businesses rely on remain parked.
“The right to collectively bargain is a constitutional guarantee. Without it, unions lose leverage to negotiate better wages and safer working conditions for all Canadians,” the union’s President Paul Boucher said Friday. “We are confident that the law is on our side, and that workers will have their voices heard.”
CPKC declined to comment Friday on the lawsuits. Canadian National has not commented.
The lawsuits won’t stop the trains because the government ordered the union to stay on the job while the arbitration process plays out.
