Final submissions to the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) reveal neither rail companies nor union believe “essential services” will be disrupted by a strike, which could pave the way for action. On 14 June, the CIRB took final submissions from Canadian National (CN), Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC), the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) and other affected organisations, to make a final decision on whether a strike should be allowed to go ahead. In the submission documents, both rail operators and the union conclude that rail services could not be deemed as essential. …Submissions arguing that a strike would cause immediate risk to public safety came from industries affiliated with named “essential” products. …Meanwhile, some stakeholders, including CN and CPKC, requested a 30-day “cooling off period” before a strike, currently only 72 hours is required.

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