Canada has two main railroads, Canadian National Railroad, and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Railroad, commonly referred to as CN Rail, and CP Rail. On August 22, 2024, for the first time in history, both Railroads went on strike, at the same time.
Even before the anticipated strike date, the Railroads refused to transport certain articles, perishable goods, such as meat and medicines, as well as hazardous materials, including chlorine.
This strike, or ‘’labour dispute’’, to use the stilted jargon of the capitalists, is expected to have a ‘’ripple effect’’ across the country, and beyond. One immediate effect, within the country, is that a great many commuters, in several large cities, will have to secure a different means of transportation.
Without doubt, the bourgeois economists are correct, when they say that ‘’Canada relies on rail’’. After all, perhaps one billion dollars worth of goods are transported, each day, across the country. With the Railroads shut down, we can expect ‘’supply chain hold ups’’, so that ‘’both small and large businesses’’, will be ‘’effected’’.
The fact is that all businesses, large and small, make a supreme effort to ‘’reduce their inventory’’, to keep as little ‘’capital on hand’’, as possible. Rather than ‘’stock up’’, in preparation ‘’for a rainy day’’, as working people do, they are careful to keep as little as possible, on hand.
In this way, they are able to keep taxes to a minimum. After all, the more stock they have on hand, the more taxes they are forced to pay.
The two Railways are represented by the same Teamsters Union, but for reasons which defy rational explanation, negotiate separate contracts. Up until the present, the contracts have been careful to expire at different times, so that never before, have both Railroads been on strike, simultaneously. In this way, a strike by one Railroad allowed the other Railroad to ‘’take up the slack’’, thus reducing the pressure on the capitalists, to negotiate a fair settlement.
According to the internet, ‘’A one year contract extension at CN Rail, in 2022, led to its contracts lining up with CPKC Rail, which expired in 2023. The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference has been in negotiations since then’’.
Clearly the workers have been working without a contract, since the start of the year. The fact that the Teamsters Union was able to force negotiations to take place, with both companies, at the same time, increases their leverage.
It is significant that this strike is completely legal, as according to a decision of the Supreme Court of Canada, on January 30, 2015, ‘’the right to strike is Constitutionally protected’’, at least for workers who are not classified as providing ‘’essential services’’. The Railroad workers are not classified as an essential service.
Both Railroad companies responded to these strikes, by imposing a ‘’lock out’’. This is a tactic the companies use, that of preventing the workers from entering the workplace to work, during a strike, which is precisely the very thing the workers are refusing to do. Even though this makes no sense, it is meant to pressure the workers to accept a new contract.
On the first day of the strike, on August 22, the leader of the New Democratic Party, Jagmeet Singh, visited the workers on strike in Montreal, and expressed his support for them. He told the workers that if necessary, he will vote against back to work legislation.
The ruling Liberal Party, led by Justin Trudeau, was clearly in favour of a ‘’negotiated settlement’’, between the Railroads and the Teamsters Union. That was made abundantly clear, up until the day of the Railroad strike. On that day, the government made it quite clear that the strike was not acceptable. The very height of hypocrisy!
With a view to ending this ‘’labour dispute’’, the Labour Minister ‘’passed the buck’’ to the Canada Industrial Relations Labour Board, CIRLB.
In an attempt to ‘’do an end run’’, around the Supreme Court ruling, which guarantees the workers the Constitutional ‘’right to strike’’, the Labour Board applied a rather obscure rule, of the Canada Labour Code:
‘’Under section 107 of the Canada Labour Code, the Minister of Labour can refer the dispute to the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) for binding arbitration and prohibit a strike, lockout or end any ongoing stoppage pending a resolution. Alternatively, the government can also reconvene Parliament and introduce back-to-work legislation’’.
As the Parliament was not sitting, it was up to the CIRB to ‘’take action’’. They immediately ruled that the strike by CN Rail was illegal, despite the Supreme Court ruling, and ordered them back to work.
The response of the Teamsters Union was to return to work, at CN Rail, but at the same time to issue CN Rail with a 72 hour strike notice, so that they will be in a legal position to strike by August 25. CPKC Rail was already in a legal position to strike, so they were not forced back to work.
Then, according to the press, on Aug 24, the government issued a surprise ruling:
‘’The Federal Labour Board orders Rail employees back to work, on Saturday, after three days. Work to start Monday, to continue until binding arbitration process is complete. Also ruled that the contract between CN and the Union, that expired on December 31, has now been extended, until a new agreement comes into effect’’.
In response to this ruling, a Spokesman for the Teamsters Union had this to say:
‘’The two major railways in Canada manufactured this crisis, took the country hostage, and manipulated the country once again, disregarding the rights afforded to working class Canadians. The government took this unprecedented step, using this seldom utilized section of the labour code, only because they knew their minority could not gather the support needed to pass a legislated resolution to appease the railroads’’.
This reference to a ‘’minority’’, requires an explanation.
The Prime Minister of Canada, has to be a member of the Party which has the majority of seats, within Parliament. As no one Party currently has a majority, it was necessary to form a ‘’coalition government’’, of two Parties. Those two Parties are the Liberal Party and New Democratic Party. Taken together, the two Parties have a majority in Parliament.
The Teamsters Union is correct when they state that the ‘’minority’’, the Liberal Party, ‘’could not gather the support needed to pass a legislated resolution’’. The NDP would merely oppose it!
In fact, such an attempt, by the Liberal government, to legislate the Railroad workers back to work, would almost certainly fail, and probably lead to a ‘’no confidence vote’’, which would force a federal election. That is the last thing the Liberals want!
The President of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, stated his response in somewhat stronger terms:
‘’ This decision by the CIRB sets a dangerous precedent. It signals to corporate Canada that large companies need only stop their operations for a few hours, inflict short term economic pain, and the federal government will step in to break a Union. The rights of Canadian workers have been significantly diminished today’’.
It is significant that these statements make references to the existence of classes, and to the fact that the government represents the interests of the ruling class of capitalists. The first statement even mentions the working class, while the second statement refers to ‘’large companies’’ and ‘’corporate Canada’’. This is a none too subtle reference to the multi billionaires, the monopoly capitalists, the bourgeoisie, the class of people who rule the country.
It is to the credit of the Teamsters Union, that they plan to fight this ruling, in federal court. As the President of Teamsters Canada stated, ‘’our legal team is looking at all our options now’’. They are determined to defend the Constitutional right of all Canadians, to engage in strike action. Bravo, Teamsters Union!
The Director of CN Rail has issued a statement, which can only be considered to be an attack upon the working class. He says the jobs provided, by the Railroad, ‘’are not minimum wage’’, that ‘’they pay one hundred twenty thousand for a conductor, and one hundred fifty thousand for a locomotive engineer’’.
That may well be true, but is no reason to not fight for higher wages. After all, wages are ‘’tied together’’. It may help to think of this as ‘’invisible chains’’, linking the wages of all workers. If the wages of the highest paid workers go up, so too, the wages of the lowest paid workers go up. It follows that the way to raise the wages of the lowest paid workers, is to raise the wages of the highest paid workers. For that reason, workers should always fight for higher wages. We all benefit!
Allow me to stress the fact, that this is true, only under capitalism. Under Scientific Socialism, a far different social system, we will have a far different economic system, so that we can focus on directly raising the wages of the lowest paid workers.
As I write this, it is Sunday, August 25, and the workers have been ordered to go back to work on Monday morning.
It has been reported that a ‘’case management meeting’’ will be held on Thursday, August 29, with the ‘’Board and Parties involved’’, to discuss the ‘’binding arbitration process’’.
Without doubt, the striking Railroad workers are angry and frustrated. They have the strong Teamsters Union fighting for them, using every legally available option, but that is not enough. They also need to become class conscious, aware of the existence of classes, the war between the classes, of the necessity of revolution, and the subsequent Dictatorship of the Proletariat. Scientific Socialism.
These Railroad workers are in the vanguard of the Canadian working class revolutionary motion. They deserve our complete support. Perhaps the best support can come in the form of copies of State and Revolution, and Left Wing Communism, An Infantile Disorder, by Lenin. Of course, there is also the ‘’Essential Works of Lenin’’, which include What Is To Be Done?, as well as Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism. The Communist Manifesto, by Marx and Engels, is a basic work.
In this way, they will become aware that their struggle, for better wages and working conditions, is part of the broader struggle, of the working class, against the class of monopoly capitalists, the multi billionaires, the bourgeoisie. Until they are overthrown, and crushed, under the Dictatorship of the Proletariat, nothing of substance will change.
We will know that we are being successful, when the posters, carried by striking workers, read something more than ‘’on strike’’. They will also contain revolutionary slogans, such as:
Workers of the World, Unite!
Scientific Socialism!
Dictatorship of the Proletariat!
Gerald McIsaac Science Project 