Here are your FOX Business Flash Top Headlines for March 18th.
The Canadian Pacific Railway halted operations and shut down workers over a labor dispute early Sunday, with each side pushing the other for a stop that could potentially disrupt the shipping of goods at a time of rising prices.
“We are very disappointed with this tour of events,” said Teamsters Canada Rail Conference spokesman Dave Fulton. The union said in a statement that it had begun striking across the country in the dispute, which it said affected 3,000 engineers, executives and farm workers.
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Canada’s second-largest railway operator has accused the union of misrepresenting the company’s position, saying in a statement that the team was “well aware of the damage this reckless action is causing to the Canadian supply chain.”
Labor Secretary Seamus O’Regan Jr. said CP and teamsters were still at the table with federal mediators.
FILE PHOTO: The Canadian Pacific Railway Station is located in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia Photo REUTERS / Ben Nelms / File photo (REUTERS / Ben Nelms / File Photo / Reuters Photos)
“We are monitoring the situation closely and expect the parties to continue working until they reach an agreement,” he said in a statement. tweet just after midnight.
Canada, the largest country by region after Russia, relies heavily on the railroad to ship goods and manufactured goods to ports. The CP’s network extends over much of southern Canada and extends as far south as Kansas City in the United States.
The blockade is the latest blow to Canada’s battered supply chain, which last year sparked flooding in British Columbia that washed out the line and suspended access to Canada’s largest port. The CP said a stop would disrupt the movement of grain, potassium and coal.
The CP had told the union on Wednesday that it would shut down workers on Sunday, without breaking through into talks over a deal on pensions, pay and benefits.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | % change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CP | CANADIA PACIFIC RAILWAY LTD. | 79.97 | +0.06 | + 0.08% |
It said the key negotiating topic was the union’s request for higher pension caps. Chief Financial Officer Nadeem Velani said at a New York investor conference on Tuesday that the railroad was unwilling to meet that demand.
Canada Nutria said this week that it may need to reduce potassium production at its mines in Saskatchewan province if the shutdown lasts longer than a few days.
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The country’s last major railroad work disruption was an eight-day Canadian National Railway Co CNR.TO strike in 2019. But in the last 12 years, there have been 12 stops due to bad weather, blockages or work problems, according to the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association.
(Report by Ann Maria Shibu in Bengaluru and Rod Nickel in Chicago; Edited by William Mallard and Muralikumar Anantharaman)
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