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CNR Strike 2019

AbdullahD

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*Allegedly* I feel compelled to write a post, further explaining the strike situation as I see it with CN rail. I originally did not post due to concerns over my job and/or feeling it was not a relevant post for this site.. now seeing how widely it is affecting Canadians and Canadas economy I will.

CN is demanding we no longer be able book rest at our home terminal past 8hrs without being punished, they are demanding the abolition of road and yard work, they are demanding the abolition of the conductor only provisions in our contract. These are the three main stickers for their side.

The union's main sticker is the abolition of belt pack work in -30°c for distances of 17 miles.

Explanation of why this is a legitimate reason to strike.
-CN wants to reset our "EO's" if we book more then 8hrs rest at our home terminal. What that means if we get in from a bad trip and need more then 8hrs rest, we will sacrifice our only way to get up to 48hrs off consecutively.
-CN wants to abolish road and yard work, what that means is traditionally one crew is to get the train to a terminal and another crew is for sorting it out. CN wants to make it that either crew can do either job or both.
-The conductor only provision essentially says CN is to do their best to make it so you can build your road train and leave in the fewest moves possible and that you only move cars that pertain to your train. So coupling this with the abolition of road and yard work.. it means they can call you for anything and make you do anything so you will never truly be prepared for work.

Now having said all this, they can already do all these things because we are not allowed to turn down work due to it being a violation of the contract. We have to do it and "grieve it" and if we forgot key parts or lack proof or forget to file the grievance they dont pay.. so it is not about being able to move frieght more effectively it is about being able to do it cheaper and work their employees longer hours. If we are on a 10hr sub and get to our final terminal on our tenth hour, they can keep working us till our 12th.. this will simply gaurantee we will always work 12hrs. Even when we file rest for our 10th telling the rail traffic controllers (rtc) we are tired and want to be at our place of rest on our 10th hour, they can work us 12hrs with no consequences aside from a small 100 mile claim we file for being violated.

Now this is not to mention the fact we can never tell when we are going to go to work, because they refuse to update the line ups. So you could be protecting a 12hr call from 07:00 to 15:00 and you never, ever know if it will be at the begining or end of your call window. Sometimes you even get called for a work train and that is a 16 hr shift. They just have trains ordered when they are needed with no warning at all and if you decline the call due to that, you get a statement and 20 demerits of which you only need 60 to be fired. So you find many many people who are being forced to work tired due to managements laziness.

Now the unions main sticker, beltpack is a two handed job, riding a car requires one hand.. minus 30 celsius for 17 miles, plus whatever wind chill due to the moving cars.. you start to see the issues.

Regarding the strike, before it happened CN managers had been told by their bosses that using management they would be able to service 60% of CNs business.. apparently they are claiming they can only do 10% now lol. They are only running intermodal trains, from what I have seen and my friends and friends of friends in many other terminals have seen. Which is calculated move, it makes them the most money, bar none and it helps turn the farmers against us as well as the Quebecois. They could very easily service the farmers and the Quebec Propane issue, if they so choose.. but they choose not to.

In emails they send to employees they keep trying to skew the optics and make it look like we want more money, we do not. The average conductor for CN makes around 114k/year.. my terminal we make more then that. What we want is the ability to know when we are going to be going to work, time to rest properly at home, the ability to plan weekends with our families and the ability to go home alive. We are tired, we are beat and they want to make it worse.

Not to mention what they did to the trainees! These guys were promised 3 months living expenses paid, a $3,600/mo training wage and were warned about a possible lay off after qualifying. They were being put up in hotels due to being relocated and given time to find homes to rent. Now word on the street is they have all been laid off due to no one being available to train them, even though managers are qualified to train them! And they are apparently being kicked out of their hotels and onto the street. We feel this is just a move by the company to put more pressure on the union and the union is fighting this hard, hopefully the company back tracks on this.

*End allegedly*
Our economy could be catapulted into a recession due to this strike, farmers are suffering, Canadians everywhere are suffering and we (I'll speak for tcrc here) are heartbroken because of it. CN is making a lot of demands this time around and binding arbitration could really hurt us.. so we are avoiding it. But we are your friends, we want to move your products and get them to market.. but if we do not strike our lives may be far far worse then they are now.

Abdullah

P.s for those who wish to show us support honk, wave, come by and chat with, heck coffee or treats are appreciated. We want to be your friends, your allies, not the badguy. Again this is not about money, it is about safety.
 
Abdullah,

As a lifelong train buff, I understand the issues you listed, and what they mean on a human level.  Good luck. What's happening to CN's customers sucks, but what's being demanded of you CN workers sucks as well.  I hope the feds will push for a workable solution that doesn't make your life and that of your colleagues more miserable and less safe.  When I heard about the beltpack issue last night on CBC I told my wife CN management were bloody insane.  Stay strong.
 
Abdullah, that is a wonderful post. I wish my father was still alive to explain some of the technical points you made.

Dad, and his father, were in the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers ( BLE ) CNR, and later VIA Rail. When he was local chairman for Division 70, I remember Dad travelling for business to their HQ in Cleveland, OH.

I don't know if Dad or Grandpa were ever on strike. But, I do recall at one point seeing picket signs in our basement. I think they were ordered back to work almost immediately, or even before it began.

The only BLE strike I am aware of was in 1946. The same year Dad hired on as a Fireman with CNR after he got out of the RCN.

So, if history is any indication, this strike may not last long,
The strike was delayed when President Truman set up a board to hear the grievances and make recommendations. After lengthy negotiations, union members voted to go on strike on 23 May 1946. The strike stranded travelers, prevented movement of perishable goods and caused concern that many people in war-devastated Europe would starve if grain shipments were delayed. Truman broadcast an appeal to the strikers to return to work, and threatened to call out the army to end the strike. On 25 May the strikers accepted his terms.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brotherhood_of_Locomotive_Engineers_and_Trainmen#Johnston_(1925–1950)

Rail Strike Paralyzes Entire U.S., 1946/05/23
https://archive.org/details/1946-05-23_Rail_Strike_Paralyzes_Entire_US
Faced with the most serious strike in its history, the U. S. is hard hit by a strike of railroad men, Delayed for five days, the strike finally does begin. Trains are idle; transportation is seriously crippled; passengers are stranded in stations." scenes of the start of the railroad strike, U.S. government takes over railroads.

'Run Trains or Army Will - Today!' - Truman
https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=qUsaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2gwEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7312,1898300&dq=truman+address+text+strike&hl=en

Abdullah. Good luck, and best wishes for a swift and successful resolution.








 
Aye Mike, I think we have chatted regarding the changes at CN since your Dad and Grandpas time :)

Now that I am a little more rested, I will say, for anyone looking for a job CN offers amazing opportunities and has a great history with Veterans. In fact many members locally either management or union side are veterans. So if you have done a stint with the armed forces and need a second career, come this way :)

Cavalryman, I am thankfully not beltpack qualified.
Instead I am CLO haha, which is kinda mix between engineer and conductor.. I could and can drive these monsters if needed in a pinch albeit I Lack the level of training engineers have. The skill and training needing to run trains year round is a respectable challenge, I used to hate the idea of being an engineer due to lack of exercise. These days I look forward to it.

Any rate, I see CN is sending propane :) I hope this strike does not turn into a political weapon and we can sort this silliness out ourselves. I also hope it ends before we are in a recession due to it.

Any rate I have no intention to spouting the union talking point over and over ^^ I just wanted to clarify and felt a seperate thread was warranted and now to quote Don Cherry in a way ;) "You Guys" deal with a lot worse then we do. Ya'll go to work sometimes expecting to get shot at and not live to see another day... my issues are small in comparison, but I thank you for making me able to have them and be able to voice them.

Abdullah
 
AbdullahD said:
, I will say, for anyone looking for a job CN offers amazing opportunities and has a great history with Veterans.

VIA is hiring,

Job Title :  LOCOMOTIVE ENGINEER

Status :  Permanent - Full time

Hourly Rate :  61.71

Application Deadline: :  2019-11-29
https://career.viarail.ca/en/job-detail/LE_THEPAS_082019--locomotive-engineer-30

Would that competition not be closed to internal applicants, such as yourself, only, Abdullah?





 
mariomike said:
VIA is hiring,

Would that competition not be closed to internal applicants, such as yourself, only, Abdullah?

VIA and CN are seperate entities these days. They operate on our rails, but are a completely seperate company.

Having said that, they are still a decent outfit. But I believe they are double engineman, so you pretty much have to be in the industry to get the job anyways.

Brihard, yeah... :(

Abdullah
 
AbdullahD said:
VIA and CN are seperate entities these days. They operate on our rails, but are a completely seperate company.

Having said that, they are still a decent outfit. But I believe they are double engineman, so you pretty much have to be in the industry to get the job anyways.

In 1977, CN spun off its passenger services as a separate Crown corporation, Via Rail Canada. VIA acquired all CN passenger cars and locomotives.

So, Dad was transferred from CN to VIA. There was no loss of seniority or pension etc. He worked for VIA on the Toronto > Montreal ( with a lay over at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel ) > Toronto run until 1991.

I went on a lot of ride-alongs on the head-end. There was loyalty and pride in productivity, and "keeping her on the advertised" ( schedule ).

But, I also saw brake shoes and signal flags placed on the "dead mans" pedal. And engineers jumping on and off locomotives "on the fly". This saved time, but also defeated the stationary brake test.

I also heard a lot about "Rule G" : drinking.

I wonder if the culture at CN and VIA changed?













 
mariomike said:
In 1977, CN spun off its passenger services as a separate Crown corporation, Via Rail Canada. VIA acquired all CN passenger cars and locomotives.

So, Dad was transferred from CN to VIA. There was no loss of seniority or pension etc. He worked for VIA on the Toronto > Montreal ( with a lay over at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel ) > Toronto run until 1991.

I went on a lot of ride-alongs on the head-end. There was loyalty and pride in productivity, and "keeping her on the advertised" ( schedule ).

But, I also saw brake shoes and signal flags placed on the "dead mans" pedal. And engineers jumping on and off locomotives "on the fly". This saved time, but also defeated the stationary brake test.

I also heard a lot about "Rule G" : drinking.

I wonder if the culture at CN and VIA changed?

The culture has very much changed. Heck even in the 2.5 years I have been at CN.

I was trained to get off moving equipment and grab switches, so the engineman would not have to stop. We were supposed to only do it under 4 mph.. sometimes we did not follow that rule to closely. We used to ride back to joints and peel off right before the joint would make, we used to drop the brakeman (or conductor) at the cut, when spotting an industry and we would always be trying to get faster and more effecient at it.

Nowaday, if we get on or off moving equipment it is apparently unsafe and we instantly get hauled out of service, piss tested and demerits.

Engineman used to use air brakes a lot more, but now they are being forced to use dynamic brakes almost exclusively and they are not quite as competent at using air. Which in the winter is a very deadly situation potentially. Dynamic braking for simplicities sake is only on the units and air (auto) sets up the entire train.. used to be you would use air while still in throttle and then kick it off as needed or come out of power to stop.. but now it is dynamic only.. a hell of a lot slower.. basically doubles the time it takes to make meets.

"Back in the day" common sense discipline existed.. if you made an honest mistake, you were ok. Intentional mistakes or multiple ones, you had an issue. Nowadays, it seems to be far more vindictive and silly. We all carry out of work insurance, because we expect to get fired for some stupid reason and get our job back down the road.

But having said that, certain aspects of the job are still fun as heck. Some managers have brains as well haha, hell a couple local managers I have nothing but respect for.. because they are good competent fellows. But alas CN is out to make money, the do a lot of silly things.. like this strike.. but they do make money ;)  I hope I kinda answered the question. Also regarding the air test, meh, any half decent engineman can test air brakes on a via easily enough and if a crew brought it to you.. chances are you have sufficient brakes to stop.. so quick pinch on the auto, independent and when you have a chance the dynamic and ba da bing ba da boom your good to go ^^ not saying it is right, but it is effective.. some rules exist that are kind of retarded testing brakes is not one of them mind you.. but not making coffee, soup or tea while moving is. Or the fact we have a rule about microwaving socks is retarded too lol

Abdullah
 
AbdullahD said:
The culture has very much changed. Heck even in the 2.5 years I have been at CN.

Abdullah, thank-you for explaining some of the finer points of railroading.
 
They didn't hamstring the economy, but might put it over the edge...


Oil, Wheat Shipments Grind to Halt and Imperil Canada’s Economy


Canada’s $1.7 trillion economy has long been closely tied to the ebbs and flows of global trade.

Now, a homegrown crisis threatens to hobble its export industries and stunt its already weak growth.

This week, thousands of workers at Canada’s largest rail company walked off the job in one of the largest nationwide labor strikes in recent memory. Shipments of exports like wheat, crude oil and aluminum -- largely from its inland prairies and bound for the U.S. and the world -- are grinding to a halt. Freight traffic has clogged up at the border. And shortages of propane risk leaving thousands in the two largest provinces without heat.

While the dispute itself, over working conditions and benefits for some 3,200 conductors and yard operators at Canadian National Railway Co., might sound like a local affair, the economic fallout is anything but. The five-day-old strike could shave off a quarter-point from growth this quarter if it lasts through Dec. 5, when lawmakers, who have the power to break the impasse, return from a hiatus. That’s considerable considering economists see Canada expanding at just a 1.3% annual rate during the period.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-11-23/canada-s-economy-could-end-up-big-loser-as-rail-strike-drags-on?srnd=premium-canada
 
I know the company my husband drives for is seeing a lot more traffic hauling stuff like methanol because of the strike. He's basically running between Montreal and Milton doing exactly that until the strike ends. More of a chance for him to spend a night or two at home during the week, but less money than he'd normally be getting driving to the US. So yes, let's hope this doesn't last too long and safety rules the day.
 
Strike said:
I know the company my husband drives for is seeing a lot more traffic hauling stuff like methanol because of the strike. He's basically running between Montreal and Milton doing exactly that until the strike ends. More of a chance for him to spend a night or two at home during the week, but less money than he'd normally be getting driving to the US. So yes, let's hope this doesn't last too long and safety rules the day.

Amen to that. The National Farmers Union have already had a display of solidarity, Today the longshoremen's union is in cahoots with the TCRC for another display of solidarity (one which I dare say will hurt). The BCGEU, ALP unions have also been bolstering our picket lines as well.

The common sentiment we have, is that the strike will not last much longer. CN is losing to much money, the stock price is sliding and the cost for our demands is significantly less then they stand to lose relative to how things used to be or currently are. I am hoping it just becomes a cost vs benefit analysis for them and they cave.

Not to mention the bonuses for all their managers this year has been axed and they have fired at least one manager for making it known he supports the unions position... the company and union for whatever reason decided not to negotiate over the weekend, but are back at it today. We have been close a couple times, but allegedly the company asks for a recess and when they come back from it they axe all the progress that had been made.

I am very sorry it is affecting your pocket book as well. It just sucks we lacked another avenue to have our needs heard without hurting Canada. As it is a lot of us will be dipping into our savings to make ends meet if this strike goes on to long, strike pay is not a heck of a lot.

Any rate I hope this gives you guys some hope, the silliness will end soon.
Abdullah
 
Abdullah,

I understand there are concerns about safety, fatigue and time-off provisions.

Also, about "a lifetime cap on drug-insurance benefits." Can you clarify about the "lifetime cap"?
ie: In Ontario ( not sure about other provinces ) you will qualify for the Ontario Drug Benefit (ODB) program when you turn 65 years old.

I also read that members sometimes operate moving trains alone from outside locomotives, hanging on with one hand while working a remote control with the other!

CN wants the union to accept binding arbitration. That's the way it was where I worked. How do you feel about that?

The government is under pressure to order the union back to work. But, so far, wants to "respect the negotiation process".

Do you ever get people asking if you have to steer the train. "No, it's on f<>king rails."  :)

Dad said the culture at VIA changed after the Hinton, Alberta wreck with a freight train in 1986.

Engineers are forced to retire at age 65. I think that may take some getting used to because now they're going to spend 24 hours a day with their wives and they've never done that.



 
mariomike said:
Abdullah,

I understand there are concerns about safety, fatigue and time-off provisions.

Right now the company does not respect when we are tired on duty, we have to be rested for a 12hr shift wether we have a 8hr lay over when lined up for a 19hr lay over.. or a 19hr lay over when lined up for an 8hr lay over.. they also want to seriously curtail our ability to spend time with our families at home. Give this a listen to understand the culture here a bit more.

http://teamstersrail.ca/Fatigued.html

Also, about "a lifetime cap on drug-insurance benefits." Can you clarify about the "lifetime cap"?
ie: In Ontario ( not sure about other provinces ) you will qualify for the Ontario Drug Benefit (ODB) program when you turn 65 years old.

Right now we have a cap on our dental at about 25k for surgeries in a lifetime, they also want to cap how much the company will pay for prescription drugs while we are employed with CN.

I also read that members sometimes operate moving trains alone from outside locomotives, hanging on with one hand while working a remote control with the other!

Yep, in minus 30 for miles on end. It is insane in my mind, but currently we are forced to do it and if we refuse we get disciplined.

CN wants the union to accept binding arbitration. That's the way it was where I worked. How do you feel about that?

I feel it is a double edged sword, right now we have more ability to get a contract we feel will make the job safer.. if we go to arbitration whoever gets appointed could be far less inclined to make the job safer and be more inclined to cave to CN due to economic dollars.

The government is under pressure to order the union back to work. But, so far, wants to "respect the negotiation process".

At 1400 local time we are going back to work, we have a tentative agreement with the company and will work while it gets ratified. I can cut you guys in for more details when I know.. but CN laid off a couple hundred engineers due to this strike and most of them will take their contractual 2 weeks to return.. so frieght movement may still be stunted for a bit yet.

https://www.cn.ca/en/news/2019/11/cn-and-conductors-reach-tentative-agreement/

Do you ever get people asking if you have to steer the train. "No, it's on f<>king rails."  :)

Haha yes that happens and we have foamer fans too, some of which are female and quite routinely show off.. err nvm ill keep this pg.

Dad said the culture at VIA changed after the Hinton, Alberta wreck with a freight train in 1986.

Engineers are forced to retire at age 65. I think that may take some getting used to because now they're going to spend 24 hours a day with their wives and they've never done that.

Yeah, good thing though they usually have hobbies to keep them apart ;) one guy locally retired then broke both his arms horseback riding lol. But quite a few families are railroaders on both sides.. or we have a number of ladies at least here who work for CN and make double or triple what their husbands work (something I love about CN, women have all the chances men do).

Regarding the hinton wreck, that did change a lot, just sad it had to happen. We are fighting so it doesn't happen again.

Abdullah
 
Fingers crossed for all involved ...
An end to a nationwide rail strike that has gripped the country for eight days is within sight, but concerns linger over the economic fallout.

Canadian National Railway Co. and Teamsters Canada reached a tentative deal Tuesday to renew a collective agreement for more than 3,000 workers, ending a strike that halted shipments, triggered layoffs and disrupted industries across the country.

Normal operations at CN will resume Wednesday at 6 a.m. local time across Canada, the union said ...
 
AbdullahD said:
Haha yes that happens and we have foamer fans too, some of which are female and quite routinely show off.. err nvm ill keep this pg.

Yeah, good thing though they usually have hobbies to keep them apart ;) one guy locally retired then broke both his arms horseback riding lol.

Abdullah

My employment area was limited to 240 square miles. So, I guess I found the idea of layovers in Montreal appealing.  :)

Good to know it looks like the strike is settled, Abdullah.

 
So, Abdullah, are you satisfied with your agreement?

Probably a bit of a compromise on both sides and not everything you want. But, at least it was a negotiated settlement, rather than an arbitration.

 
mariomike said:
So, Abdullah, are you satisfied with your agreement?

Probably a bit of a compromise on both sides and not everything you want. But, at least it was a negotiated settlement, rather than an arbitration.

The company backed down from what they wanted to take away from us, so that was a plus.

-They upped our dental, medical, life ins, disability a little, barely worth mentioning.
-made beltpack workers safer ie allowed to ride in locomotives, which is a huge win.
-made it so when we file rest, when it is due, we can actually go handles up.. which is an astounding win utterly amazing. I'm very happy with this.

I was hoping for bankable plds, vacation etc but overall I am content enough with this contract. Did not go far enough in addressing home life.. but its a start. Our last contract the company got a lot, so now we just got some back. What I really want changed has nothing to do with the contract.. it is more with culture.

Ie -common sense, crikey this crew got called off their 19th, lets have them rescued on their 8th hr because we know they are bagged.
-stop the created pmrcs, enough scenarios exist were organic rule failures exist.. so they should stop creating them.
-common sense application of rules, if guys are breaking rules safely to get the job done close your eyes. Only get after them when it really is unsafe.. getting off moving equipment at 4 per isn't something they should be going after us on etc.
-fixing the lineups so we know when were going to work.

I have a few other concerns, but basically I want us to be a team not a us vs them mentality. But sadly, this is a pipe dream the union is ignorant in my opinion towards the company in some aspects and the company has it's flaws when dealing with employees.. I wish we  could all just grow the hell up.

But again I'll reiterate the strike was legitimate in my books and that is why I joined the picket line.. otherwise I'd happily cross it ie if we were striking to get paid more.. but this time we were striking go get paid less lol.

Abdullah

P.s ugh i used railroad terms, sorry, if it doesnt make sense using the sentences context I'll explain them.
 
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