Rail operations in Canada are set to restart on Wednesday, ending a week-long strike that disrupted wheat and rapeseed exports from the country's main west coast port.
Canada's main rail union said Tuesday it has reached a tentative agreement with the Canadian National Railways (CN) after a strike involving 3,200 employees prevented shipments of wheat, rapeseed and potash from reaching Vancouver export terminals. .
The tentative agreement will likely avoid work stoppages and layoffs of export-dependent companies, including the grains sector.
Meanwhile, at least 35 ships were queued off Canada's west coast waiting to be loaded with grain, Mark Hemmes, president of Quorum Corp, which tracks grain shipments for the government, according to a Reuters report.
The Canadian Oilseed Processors Association (COPA), which includes companies such as ADM, Bunge, Cargill, Louis Dreyfus and Richardson, said at the start of the rail strike that it would be forced to restrict rapeseed production due to logistical delays.
“After a week-long strike, the Teamsters and Canadian National (CN) have reached a tentative agreement to renew the collective agreement,” the union said in its press release.
He added: “Normal operations at CN will resume tomorrow at 6 a.m. local time,” the Quebec union said.
The union will hold meetings across Canada to explain the terms of the agreement to members, which will be followed by a secret vote to ratify the tentative agreement — a process that “generally takes several months,” the union said.
Details of the contract will be released only after members have had a chance to review the document.
“Previous governments routinely violated the right of workers in the railway sector to strike. This government remained calm and focused on helping the parties reach an agreement and it worked,” said François Laporte, president of Teamsters Canada.
“We want to thank our customers for their patience and support and ensure that CN is preparing to resume full rail operations as quickly as possible,” CN CEO Jean-Jacques Ruest said in a statement.
The tentative agreement came after Canadian businesses, including farmers, warned of the impact on their operations since the seven-day strike, which brought internal logistics to a complete standstill.
Farmers in Quebec protested Monday by dumping bags of corn on the steps of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's office, demanding an end to the strike as it had caused a shortage of propane needed to dry corn after a wet harvest.
Source: AgriCensus
