Canadian National Rail issues lockout notice to Teamsters

Dear Valued Customers,

Swire Shipping North America want to communicate with you a regional issue that may impact your business.

The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC), representing thousands of workers at Canadian National Railway Co. (CN Rail) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. (CPKC), has issued a 72-hour strike notice to CPKC. This action means that unless a last-minute agreement is reached, workers will begin a strike at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time on Thursday, August 22nd.

Following this announcement, CN Rail issued a notice of intention to lockout workers at the same time unless a resolution or agreement for binding arbitration is secured. Despite negotiations over the weekend, CN Rail reports that no meaningful progress has been made.

CN Rail has warned that without an immediate resolution, it will proceed with a phased and progressive shutdown of its network, leading to a lockout. Both CPKC and CN Rail have already begun halting shipments and issuing embargoes in anticipation of the potential work stoppage.

Swire Shipping North America understands the potential impacts that this may have on you or your customers’ supply chains and ensures you that we are here to help navigate this situation.

If you have any questions, please reach out to your Swire Shipping North America Sales Representative.