MONTREAL – Canadian National Railway and Unifor have resumed contract talks a day before the railway has threatened to lock out nearly 5,000 employees.
A CN statement says the company hopes to reach a negotiated settlement or to persuade the union to agree to binding arbitration.
The railway said Friday that it intends to lock out the 4,800 workers represented by Unifor at 11 p.m. Monday unless the union agrees to binding arbitration to settle contract differences.
READ MORE: CN Rail plans contract changes after talks fail
The union, which has announced plans to begin a strike vote next week after the failure of five months of negotiations, rejected the company ultimatum.
A Unifor spokesperson confirmed the two sides are meeting.
On Feb. 14, Unifor reached an agreement with Canadian Pacific Railway after a one-day strike. That deal made a number of improvements, including rail safety and working conditions.
The deal came after the federal government moved to bring in legislation to end the strike.
A statement from federal Labour Minister Kellie Leitch made no hint of such a move in the CN talks. It only said Leitch has been in touch with both sides and welcomed the resumption of negotiations.
She said both sides have promised that commuter rail service in Montreal will not be affected by any work-stoppage.
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