19 April 2007
CP Rail Says "No Utility" in Union Talks
Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. said there's "no utility"
in trying to revive talks with 3,000 unionized maintenance workers threatening a strike next week at the country's
second-largest railroad.
Government mediators advised Canadian Pacific that further negotiations would have little practical purpose because the company and the
Teamsters union are too far apart, railroad spokesman Mark Seland said in a voicemail message.
"CP did seek advice of federal conciliation officers assigned to the file, and we were advised that there's no utility in further
meetings," Seland said after the Teamsters said yesterday that the railroad "backed away" from resuming talks over a
four-year contract that expired 31 Dec 2006.
The development raises the likelihood of a walkout as soon as 25 Apr 2007, when a cooling-off period ordered
by the government expires. A strike would compound freight delays from a work stoppage that began 10 Feb 2007 at Canadian
National Railway Co., the country's largest railroad, by conductors and yard workers.
"We do not believe that a negotiated solution can be found if there is no dialogue," William Brehl, president of Teamsters
Canada Rail Conference, Maintenance of Way Employees Division, said in a statement yesterday.
Calgary-based Canadian Pacific and the maintenance workers, who inspect rails to prevent accidents, haven't talked since
30 Mar 2007. The union is seeking wage increases of 4 percent a year over four years, according to Brehl.
The railroad is offering 3 percent for 2007, 2009, and 2010, and a 4 percent boost for 2008, Seland said on 2 Mar 2007.
Shares of Canadian Pacific fell 85 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $68 at 4:15 p.m. in Toronto Stock Exchange composite trading. The stock
gained 11 percent this year before today.
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