Forewarned is forearmed. But it still might be too little, too late if rail workers walk off the job starting next week.That’s why Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is warning the federal government to be prepared to do “everything in their power” to avert a potential work stoppage between both of Canada’s major rail companies and the Teamsters union.Last week the rail companies warned they will lock out 9,300 engineers, conductors and yard workers after negotiations stalled over scheduling and wages. The two sides don’t appear to be any closer to a deal.Last Friday, the national labour board ruled that a work stoppage would pose no “serious danger” to public health or safety, opening the gate to a full-fledged strike or lockout. Which is to say, the government is unlikely to intervene in the event of a stoppage.Shippers say any job action would further grind the country’s supply chain, halting freight traffic and disrupting industries like last summer’s port strikes on the West Coast..If rail workers are indeed locked out starting on August 22, it would be an unprecedented simultaneous shutdown of both Canada’s major rail carriers that could inflict potentially billions of dollars of economic damage in both Canada and the US.Already CN and CP have started blocking shipments of certain hazardous materials from the US in anticipation of a strike. On Friday CP said it is undertaking the move to ensure such shipments won’t wind up stranded on the tracks in the event of job action. Those products include chlorine used in water treatment, ammonia fertilizer as well as other toxic or explosive materials. Most municipalities only carry a week’s stockpile of water treatment agents while disruption of fertilizer has raised alarm bells among farm groups.“Canada’s reputation has been damaged by the numerous supply chain disruptions in recent history,” Fertilizer Canada president Karen Proud in a release. “This uncertainty gives our international competitors, like Russia and China, an advantage.“Should a prolonged work stoppage occur, the adverse impact for all Canadians will be deep and long-lasting, with many of the most significant impacts felt by Western Canadian farmers,” wrote Adam Legge, president of the Alberta business council.“We urge the government to immediately take all actions necessary to achieve a speedy resolution.”According to Smith, a work stoppage would “effectively shut down Canadian logistics networks and disrupt the movement of essential goods across North America,” she posted on Twitter (“X”).“In the interest of all Canadians, and to avoid disastrous economic impacts, I continue to urge the federal government to do everything in their power to prevent a rail work stoppage,” she said.
