2024 Canadian Rail Lockout
The 2024 Canadian Rail Lockout was the August 22, 2024 simultaneous lockout of about 9,300 workers at Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Kansas City, which halted most Canadian freight rail until the government imposed arbitration.
What happened and why it matters
The 2024 lockout showed how a Canadian rail stoppage can quickly affect US shippers, because much cross-border and intermodal freight relies on CN and CPKC. Both railways locked out members of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference on August 22, 2024, after contract talks failed, stopping trains that carry containers, grain, chemicals, and auto parts. The same day, Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon used section 107 of the Canada Labour Code to refer the dispute to the industrial relations board, which on August 24 ordered binding arbitration and a return to work. Even a few days of stoppage creates backlogs that take weeks to clear.