Senate panel on rail, port strikes draws labour backlash

A Senate committee proposal to restrict strikes by rail and port workers has drawn sharp criticism from Canada's labour movement, which says the measures would strip workers of fundamental rights.

The Senate Committee on Transportation and Communications tabled the report, called Keep Canada Moving, on June 11. It recommends creating a new supply chain tribunal that would implement mandatory mediation or arbitration at the start of bargaining if a strike or lockout would "adversely affect the national interest."

If mediation fails, binding arbitration could be ordered to prohibit the strike or lockout outright — a proposal labour leaders call an infringement on workers' ability to negotiate.

"The government should put this Senate report where it belongs — straight into the trash bin," said CUPE National President Mark Hancock.

Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan emphasized that the right to strike is fundamental. "Just because the government changes laws, that doesn't mean that there won't be less worker unrest. It doesn't even mean there will be fewer strikes. It just means the strikes that happen will be illegal."

The report also recommends amending the Canada Labour Code to explicitly define the Labour Minister's powers and to remove the word "immediate" when describing an essential service — changes that could give the Canada Industrial Relations Board more ground to impose binding arbitration.

The Senate says the measures would "improve the performance of Canada's transportation network and strengthen Canada's reputation as a reliable trading partner."

Economics professor Kent Fellows at the University of Calgary noted that rail and port labour action draws attention because the infrastructure is critical to the economy. In 2024, a CPKC work stoppage that was resolved through binding arbitration was estimated to cost $340 million per day. Nearly 300 CPKC signal workers have been off the job since May 31.

Grain farmer Ian Guldberg near Drumheller said he respects workers' rights but also feels the cost of strikes. "It's always one of those tricky things when it's sort of like well, okay, you might be fighting the good fight, but you're sort of using me as an unintentional pawn to win that fight, and that's hurting my business."

The Senate will debate the report and could adopt it, though there is no requirement for the government to implement it.