By Robb M. Stewart


An arm of Canadian National Railway dealing with trucking container pickup and deliveries has reached a tentative deal with owner-operators affiliated with labor union Unifor even as the threat of a strike looms by other workers that could disrupt the movement of goods in North America.

CN Rail said its CNTL subsidiary reached a second tentative agreement with Unifor-affiliated operators, and a first tentative deal announced in January wasn't ratified.

The four-year agreement covers about 750 owner-operators under contract with CNTL in Canada through the end of 2027.

Last week, members of the United Steelworkers Local 2004, which represents roughly 2,500 workers largely responsible for track maintenance, ratified a three-year labor deal with CN Rail.

However, Teamsters Canada which represents more than 9,000 workers at CN Rail and Canadian Pacific Kansas City has said members could walk off the job as early as May 22 after most of them voted in favor of going on strike. A walkout threatens extensive disruption across North American logistics networks.

Teamsters Canada is negotiating three labor agreements with the two big railroads and last week it said its negotiators and company executives are at an impasse.


Write to Robb M. Stewart at robb.stewart@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

05-07-24 1435ET