It’s hard to imagine a labour distribution that would be more impactful than this potential dual railway strike or lockout, says Greg Northey, vice president of corporate affairs for Pulse Canada.
He’s not overstating the gravity of the impending situation, just over a week away, barring some sort of major move by one of the railways or the union involved — or through government intervention.
Northey points to the short timeline of an August 22nd lockout deadline and says that there’s limited runway here to prevent what has been described as a catastrophic risk to not just the agriculture industry but also the Canadian economy.
The Minister of Labour, Steven MacKinnon, could use Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code and refer the matter to the Canada Industry Relations Board and force an agreement or commit the parties to binding arbitration. “The reality is, [the legislation has] never been tested in this way,” says Northey.
In order to press the issue, especially given the short timeframe, Northey says that a letter writing campaign has been set up through StopTheStrike.ca so that farmers, industry, or concerned Canadians can directly send a message to their MP citing the importance of avoiding a strike of this magnitude.
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