CPKC chief urges Parliament to strengthen labour bill to prevent rail strikes

Keith Creel, the president and chief executive officer of Canadian Pacific Kansas City, says the federal government's proposed labour legislation does not go far enough to prevent economic damage from work stoppages. Creel argues the Building Canada Strong Act, or Bill C-39, should be amended to give the government the power to impose binding arbitration before a strike or lockout begins. He says the current bill only allows the government to act after a work stoppage has started, which is too late to prevent widespread harm. "For a railway, and its global customers, disruption hits long before a work stoppage begins," Creel wrote in an opinion piece. "That disruption also lasts weeks after employees return to work." He said Parliament must strengthen the bill by giving the government "the carefully tailored authority to direct the parties into binding arbitration before a work stoppage is allowed to inflict nationwide damage." Creel said this authority should be reserved for exceptional cases where negotiations are deadlocked and a work stoppage would significantly harm Canada's economy or supply chains.

Creel said the proposed Special Mediator process in Bill C-39 should bring greater transparency to difficult labour disputes. He said CPKC and other employers have seen conduct from some union leaders that stands in the way of a settlement. He credited the government of Prime Minister Mark Carney for acknowledging that labour disputes in critical sectors cause harm beyond the bargaining table. However, he said the bill falls short of the bold action needed. "Bill C-39’s proposed new Special Mediator process should bring greater transparency and accountability to Canada’s most challenging labour disputes by putting a public spotlight on conduct that stands in the way of a negotiated settlement," Creel wrote. He argued that a work stoppage, or even the threat of one, at railways, major ports or airlines increases consumer costs and weakens confidence in Canada as a place to invest.

Creel addressed union concerns that pre-emptive intervention infringes on the constitutional right to strike. "This is false," he wrote. "Canadian courts have routinely found the right to strike is not absolute. Courts have upheld legitimate limitations where a substantial and pressing public interest exists if an alternative process that is fair, balanced and proportionate is provided." He said binding arbitration, where an independent third party hears both sides, provides that constitutionally valid alternative.

He said this pre-emptive authority is not pro-employer or anti-union, but a tool to protect the national public interest. "Fairness has to extend to workers and employers," Creel wrote. "It also must extend to all Canadians who have no seat at the bargaining table but still bear the consequences." He said Canadian law should not reward leveraging unionized employees against the entire country. Creel said the government must match its diagnosis of the problem with a reasonable solution. "Members of Parliament and senators must show courageous leadership to safeguard Canada’s national interest and do what is right," he wrote. "Parliament must strengthen Bill C-39 and seize the moment for the benefit of all Canadians."

With files from The Globe and Mail