30 May 2007
Striking TCRC-MWED Workers Making Themselves Heard
Strikers picketed the railway crossing on Anderson Road last
Friday, west of Golden. They're members of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference Maintenance of Way Employees Division and are on
strike for better pay and working conditions.
Golden British Columbia - A few of the more than 40
striking members of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference Maintenance of Way Employees Division (TCRC-MWED) in Golden
decided their peaceful picketing needed to become a little more noisy.
The TCRC-MWED is striking for better pay and working conditions. Strike Captain Hal Porter says the strike could last
until September if either the company or the union leader doesn't head to the table before then.
Porter says his part of the union is responsible for the maintenance of the CP tracks, and build, maintain and inspect the tracks,
bridges and structures on the railway.
The strike began on Wednesday, 16 May 2007.
Last Friday, Chris Gorrigan, Clayton Robinson, Curt Statchuk, and Porter took their picketing to the Anderson Road railway crossing.
They arrived at the crossing at about 2:15 p.m., just in time to greet a train heading westbound. The train came to a stop and stood
still for about half an hour.
Just as the train was about to roll on, an eastbound train made its way up the tracks, arriving at about 2:45 p.m. It also stopped for
the picketers, standing still for about half an hour.
In the meantime, CP police arrived on the scene and gave Porter a warning about his actions.
The engineers driving the trains belong to a different TCRC-MWED local but are mandated by federal law and are not allowed
to strike. If they do, they could face serious fines.
Porter says the engineers are considered an essential service and must therefore cross the picket lines. But when they see picketers,
like they did last week, they will stop.
The impact of these stops is great. Porter says the train schedules are down to the minute, and one stop here will impact several
others down the line - both east - and westbound.
However, according to CP Spokesperson Mark Seland, the strike is not having the impact some might think it is.
"Quite the contrary," he explains. "The publically available data (provided by the American Association of Railroads)
is reporting CP as being the only railroad in North America with increased carloads during that period - last week."
But Porter's worried about the state of the tracks while this portion of the union is on strike. Replacement workers have been brought
in to do their jobs while the strike is on.
Porter isn't convinced the tracks are being kept safe.
"The town is at risk; this is a time bomb here, they don't realize the implications of this until something bad happens," he
says. "The town doesn't know what they could be faced with if a disaster does occur because the rails aren't being maintained
properly."
Seland says that's not the case either.
In the weeks leading up to the strike, Seland says CP incurred a one-time cost - of how much he isn't sure - to train the
replacement workers. Most of them came out of engineering ranks, so have done jobs in the past, like the ones they're doing now.
"Obviously (our standard of safety is being maintained) - it's federally regulated," Seland explains. "We meet with
Tranport Canada every day. We tour the property every day. And the same people who were inspecting the tracks prior to the strike are
inspecting the tracks today.
"Our tracks are being maintained with the same efficiency and quality as they were before the strike. We are widely recognized as
North America's safest railroad and we will not jeopardize that destinction during the strike."
He adds there are two sides to every story.
But Porter says cuts over the years leading up to the strike had put the TCRC-MWED workers behind schedule. He can't
imagine the state of repair the rails are in now.
He says CP is taking a "big gamble running heavy tonnage without any work being done properly to the tracks."
"The company is not showing any interest in speaking with the union to try and change this up and we're not asking for much,"
he explains.
The union is asking for a four, five and four percent increase in the first year of a new contract and the company has offered three,
four and three percent.
Seland says CP hasn't heard from the union since they walked from negotiations on 28 Apr 2007.
"We would prefer to get towards a negotiated settlement, but we will operate in this mode as long as required," Seland
explains.
The costs associated with bringing in replacement workers is "roughly neutral", according to Seland, who says the costs are
"offset by the $3 million savings" CP is experiencing by not having to pay those workers currently on strike.
And, he says the company has deferred "all capital projects, such as expansions and capital improvements, which are typically done
each summer during the construction season."
On Saturday morning, Porter and his fellow employees received a surprise visit from CP President and CEO Fred Green. He arrived around
9:30 a.m. on his private jet, spending about five minutes in town speaking with strikers.
Seland says Green was in town paying a visit to replacement workers who have left their families and regular jobs to maintain the
status quo.
"We talked about the pattern of wages and that the company is not going to move on that and my response was that I feel this has
nothing to do with patterns at all," Porter says. "When I look around and see CP spending millions on security and office
managers here as a presence..."
Green told Porter he wants them to be "back at work, but is not willing to break the pattern."
Seland says Green stopped in four or five locations throughout the weekend.
"He let me know that the strike is having no effect on train traffic, but the track is going to suffer from this," Porter
says. "I think now he's getting concerned, otherwise why would he make a trip to Golden? He's never done that before."
Union President, Bill Brehl was not available for comment when The Golden Star attempted to contact him before press time on Monday.
WANT TO KNOW MORE?
If you would like more information about the strike, visit the union's website at
tcrcmwed.ca or CP Rail website at
cpr.ca.
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