Photo: The Canadian Press

A CN locomotive makes it's way through the CN Taschereau yard in Montreal, Saturday, Nov., 28, 2009.

CN Rail says its 1,800 locomotive engineers in Canada have ratified a new five-year collective agreement.

The Montreal-based railway says the contract with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) includes annual wage and benefit improvements in line with the industry. The company also says work rules that were of concern to CN and engineers have been modified.

CN chief operating officer Mike Cory says the contract demonstrated the company's commitment to work with employees to address workplace issues in a "respectful and mutually beneficial manner.”

He adds that the contract which expires on Dec. 31, 2022, was renewed without any impact on service.

The approval stands in contrast with the expected result of a contract offer by Canadian Pacific Railway. Train operators and signal workers represented by two unions are voting until Friday at noon on a company offer that union negotiators recommended be rejected.

Federal Employment Minister Patty Hajdu ordered last month that the company's offer be presented directly to union members in a vote administered by the Canadian Industrial Relations Board.