Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. railway signal and communications workers represented by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers have been on strike since May 31.Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press
The union that represents 300 striking railway track signal workers at Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. CP-T is alleging that the company is violating federal anti-scab legislation by using contract workers to perform signal work in order to keep its rail operations running.
In a complaint filed with the Canadian Industrial Relations Board, and obtained by The Globe and Mail, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers’ rail division alleges one of its union officers observed a contractor “testing, commissioning, inspecting and/or troubleshooting signals” at a railway crossing in Sudbury, Ont., on June 1.
CPKC railway signal and communications workers represented by IBEW have been on strike since May 31.
The union’s complaint contains photographic evidence of contract workers performing what IBEW claims is a monthly crossing test at the Sudbury crossing, and states that that testing work is normally performed by unionized employees.
The CIRB held a hearing on Monday with the union and CPKC about the allegations, but no decision was made by the board. Hearings continue on June 22.
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In a statement, CPKC spokesperson Patrick Waldron said the company has complied with “all applicable laws” during the strike, “including the new replacement worker provisions.” He added that the federal labour code allows federally regulated employers to use certain employees and contractors to continue services through a strike, and that is what the rail company has been doing.
When the strike, which is now entering its third week, began, the rail company said it had a backup plan in place and operations would continue regardless of the strike, but provided no details of who would do the jobs usually done by signal workers.
At the heart of the dispute is wages and the high turnover rate of signal workers at CPKC, related issues that IBEW’s senior general chairman Jason Sommer says are creating a difficult work environment.
“We are ready to resume negotiations with CPKC at any time. But right now, there are no scheduled meetings and no meaningful discussions have taken place,” he said.
In his statement, Mr. Waldon said CPKC remains “prepared and available to meet with IBEW leadership to resume negotiations and reach a negotiated agreement.”
Anti-scab legislation, which took effect in June, 2025, prohibits federally regulated employers, such as transportation companies, banks, airlines and telecommunications companies, from using replacement workers during strikes or lockouts. The enactment of the legislation last year was widely regarded as a significant win for unions and labour advocates, who had long complained that the use of replacement workers undermined the leverage workers could gain from striking and prolonged labour disputes.
Unions representing non-essential workers can enter into maintenance of activities agreements with employers during bargaining, whereby both parties agree to keep workers on the job even if negotiations go awry. Mr. Sommer said at the start of bargaining, CPKC proposed to IBEW that they sign a maintenance of activities agreement, asking that 70 per cent of the bargaining unit stay on the job even in the event of a strike. The union rejected that request.
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“The law is crystal clear that an employer cannot use a contractor to perform work that would normally have been performed by striking workers,” said David Doorey, professor of work law at York University.
However, Prof. Doorey noted that if contractors had performed this work before the strike, the employer would be able to argue that those were not “duties of the employees” who are on strike.
There is a grey area in the current iteration of the anti-scab law that allows employers to use non-unionized employees of the same company, such as managers, to perform the jobs of striking workers during a strike or lockout.
During a strike of 25 Rogers Communications technicians late last year in Abbotsford, B.C., the telecom giant brought in managers to perform the jobs of the striking employees. The union representing the technicians, United Steelworkers, said Rogers’ move contravened the spirit of the legislation. Last week, the federal NDP introduced a bill that targets this specific loophole.
Federally regulated employers have been actively lobbying Ottawa to amend certain provisions of the Canada Labour Code in order to make it harder for workers to go on strike. They’re also pushing the federal government to expand the definition of what constitutes an essential worker, arguing that strikes by transportation workers in particular, in the current economic climate, are causing further supply chain unpredictability.
Ottawa is performing a review of aspects of the federal labour code, but has set no timeline for making a decision on potential changes.