Farm groups continue to urge the railways and the union representing its workers to reach an agreement as soon as possible.

This comes after the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) made its ruling known Friday that a potential strike of CPKC and CN Rail workers would not pose a serious danger to the health and safety of Canadians, adding the services rail employees provide don’t amount to essential work.

The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC), the union backing CPKC and CN Rail workers, said in a letter to members the CIRB’s ruling on a work stoppage not posing an immediate danger “verifies that the agreements previously entered were proper and appropriate. The TCRC considers this a successful decision that confirms the membership’s rights to withdraw services if required.”

The CIRB also ordered a 13-day cooling off period, meaning if a deal is not reached a strike could occur as early as August 22.

“What it does do is give some certainty now that we’re looking at August 22 for a strike,” said Daryl Fransoo, Chair of the Western Wheat Growers Association about the early strike date. Fransoo feels there should have been urgency from day one. “We know that there’s going to be a strike on the 22nd unless (Labour) Minister (Steve) MacKinnon really puts the screws to the union and the railroads and that’s what we’re asking, like everything is at your disposal to get something done.”

Fransoo said a strike of either CPKC or CN, or both, “will absolutely devastate the ag industry right at our harvest time, the peak shipping time.” Fransoo also noted speaking to Minister MacKinnon a week ago and said he heard “some urgency” in MacKinnon’s voice, so he hopes an agreement can be made in time.

The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) said in a news release that producers “rely heavily on the timely transportation of grain to ports, with an average distance of 1,850 kilometres by rail to market destinations.” Canadian grain exports totaled $36.2 billion in 2023, with Saskatchewan making up over half of those exports, and 94 per cent of Canadian grain shipped by rail, according to APAS.

The National Cattle Feeders said the following on X, “With the Canada Industrial Relations Board decision tabled today, cattle feeders across Canada have serious concerns about the potential CN and CPKC work stoppage. The Canadian cattle industry relies heavily upon the timely delivery of cattle feed by rail. We urge all parties to work toward an expedited labour resolution.”

“The parties in this dispute have a responsibility to Canadians. I call upon the parties to stay at the bargaining table and continue holding productive and substantive discussions that meet the needs of this moment. A negotiated agreement is the best way forward.” said Minister MacKinnon in a statement about the ruling, which he shared on X.

Negotiators for the railways and the union have been meeting this week and those negotiations, with assistance from federal mediators, are expected to continue next week as well.

CPKC said it remains committed to avoiding a work stoppage and will “focus on a status quo-style contract renewal covering three years with competitive wage increases that are consistent with recent settlements with other railway unions and maintains the status quo for all work rules. The status quo-style offer fully complies with new regulatory requirements for rest and does not in any way compromise safety.”

Crew scheduling and fatigue management are the main stumbling blocks in negotiations that had been ongoing since November 2023.