Canadian Pacific Kansas City says it has activated contingency measures to maintain operations across Canada after nearly 300 signalling and communications workers launched strike action over the weekend following unsuccessful contract negotiations.
Members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) System Council No. 11 officially walked off the job at 8 a.m. MDT on May 31 after months of bargaining failed to produce an agreement. The workers maintain and repair railway signalling and communications infrastructure across CPKC’s network from Vancouver to Montreal.
CPKC said rail service has continued despite the labour disruption.
The company said it offered wage and benefit increases consistent with agreements reached with its other Canadian unions and is encouraging the union to accept binding arbitration.
The union argues the dispute centres on more than wages, pointing to concerns over work-life balance, on-call demands, compensation, and retention issues within the department. Union officials say experienced employees have increasingly left for higher-paying opportunities elsewhere in the rail industry, worsening staffing pressures.
“The bargaining committee did not take this step lightly,” union Senior General Chairman Jason Sommer said in a release Sunday. “Throughout this process, the Union remained committed to reaching a fair negotiated settlement for our members. Unfortunately, the Company failed to meaningfully address the issues affecting recruitment, retention, compensation, and work-life balance within the Signals & Communications department.”
Strike action was backed by a 96% mandate vote after negotiations and federally mandated conciliation and mediation efforts failed to produce a settlement.
