United Steelworkers Local 2004 reaches tentative deal with CN Rail

Photo: The Canadian Press

Locomotives sit idle in the railyard on Tuesday, November 19, 2019 in Montreal. The United Steelworkers union says it has reached a tentative deal with Canadian National Railway Co. for a new contract covering 3,000 workers in Canada.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz

The United Steelworkers union says it has reached a tentative deal with Canadian National Railway Co. for a new contract covering 3,000 workers in Canada.

USW Local 2004 says the three-year deal covers CN Rail employees who inspect, maintain and repair the railway’s track, bridges and infrastructure across the country.

The union says the new agreement, reached after months of negotiations, is being unanimously endorsed by the union’s nine-member bargaining committee.

It says ratification meetings will take place this month with results expected by the end of March or early April.

CN Rail announced the deal in a separate release, saying no details will be made public until the deal is ratified.

The railway is still working to reach a deal with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference for a new collective agreement for about 6,000 conductors and other CN Rail workers.