The impacts of an impending dual rail strike are already being felt by Canada’s export-dependent industries and individual farmers, but the pain is about to get a whole lot worse for businesses and, in turn, Canadians.
At a press conference today, several producer groups, including the Grain Growers of Canada, the Canola Council of Canada, Pulse Canada, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) and more, outlined the coming economic catastrophe that is already beginning in anticipation of the dual railway strike that begins at midnight tonight (Aug 22).
Some grain companies have already stopped taking grain, says Andre Harp, farmer and chair of Grain Growers of Canada.
Products coming in to Canada or products produced here that need moved to customers and to port are already being moved by truck. But leaning on the trucking industry to do what rail currently does is not only three-times more costly, but it’s also less fuel and time efficient, and it’s impossible. There simply aren’t enough trucks or drivers to make up the difference, says Pierre Lampron, second vice president of CFA.
Perishable food, such as meat, fruit, and vegetables, has already been blocked from being shipped by rail. Even a relatively short-term work stoppage could mean closed businesses and layoffs.
Farmer and chair of the Canola Council, Dean Roberts, says that a strike will cost the canola industry alone $11 million per day in lost exports, and a further 20-plus million per day in idle crush facilities. “At a time when Canada’s reputation is already in question, we are sleep walking into a calamity,” he says.
Shawna Mathieson, executive director of the Prairie Oat Growers, cites data from Quorum Corp. that suggests the long-term impact of even just one week of a railway shutdown will have repercussions for months. “One week of disruption could take up to 14 weeks to catch up; that puts us to December 4,” adding that railway movement typically slows during the winter months due to extreme cold and snowy conditions. She adds that trucking has a larger carbon footprint than moving by rail.
The daily cost of a rail strike is estimated at $1 billion per day, but the true cost may take years to be fully realized, as export customers already question if Canada is a reliable supplier of what’s offered. Terry Youzwa, farmer and chair of Pulse Canada, says, “Every time we meet with customers, reliability of supply is always up for discussion.” Right now, Canadian peas can move into India without a steep tariff, but that ends at the end of October. If a strike happens, Canadian farmers may literally miss the boat on that market, and Canada’s reputation, he says, may be damaged forever.
When asked why they thought the government had not used Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code to avoid this strike, members of the press conference conveyed that cooperation between the disputing parties and resolution without a strike was the desired outcome. “When we all work together, and trade moves, we all win,” says Youzwa. Barring that, however, we all lose, he says.
Related:
Final countdown on toward unprecedented Canadian rail system shutdown
80% of farmers in Western Canada are concerned about the impact of a rail strike
Some fertilizer deliveries already delayed ahead of rail strike
Teamsters vote to authorize rail strikes at CN and CPKC
