Unifor meets with CN today, resume full negotiations tomorrow

OTTAWA, Feb. 22, 2015 /CNW/ - Federal Mediation and Conciliation Services convened a meeting in Ottawa today between CN Rail and Unifor in an effort to find a path forward towards a negotiated settlement.

This afternoon there were high level discussions between Unifor National President Jerry Dias and CN President and CEO Claude Mongeau, who had meaningful dialogue in an effort to move the talks forward.

Unifor bargaining committees are currently on route to Ottawa to restart talks with CN late tomorrow.  

Unifor has committed to federal mediators that if CN does lock out Unifor members, the union will not disrupt the Montreal ‎commuter service. 

"If the lock-out occurs, CN has made a conscious decision to shut down customer service," said Dias.

Unifor has six collective agreements with CN Rail, which cover mechanics, clerical workers, excavator operators, locomotive engineers (Savage Rail) and truck drivers. Unifor Local 100 represents skilled trades in mechanical shops and Unifor Council 4000 represents intermodal, clerical, mechanics and owner operators. Unifor is the largest union at CN with more than 4,800 members.

Unifor represents 9,000 railway workers and 305,000 members across the country in every sector of the economy.

SOURCE Unifor