Rail shippers in Canada and the U.S.breathing a sigh of relief

Rail shippers in Canada and the U.S. could be heard breathing a sigh of relief late Friday evening after the CP announced it had come to what may be just a temporary agreement with the two unions that had planned to strike April 21. If that strike occurs, it will disrupt rail movement in and out of Canada and the western U.S. because they rely on service from the CP.The CP announced April 20, "This evening, we reached an agreement with both the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference-Train & Engine (TCRC) and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), which averts the potential work stoppage of 12:01 a.m. ET tomorrow, April 21, 2018. As such, CP's embargoes for shipments routing to and from CP Canadian locations has been cancelled effective immediately. CP will immediately begin to execute a safe and structured start-up of its train operations in Canada."However, it does not appear that a strike is completely off the table. The Minister of Labor directed the Canadian Industrial Relations Board to administer a ratification vote on each of the company's final offers to members of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (Teamsters) and the IBEW, according to the CP.According to CBC Canada, Teamsters Canada President Doug Finnson said in a statement, "CP succeeded in delaying the inevitable. The government will bring this ridiculous offer to our members and we strongly recommend that members vote against it. I would like to reassure our members that we have given nothing up."The Teamsters and the IBEW only agreed to postpone a strike until after the vote, but Finnson said, "CP has exhausted all of its possibilities and will have to eventually face its workers." Finnson described CP as victims "of their own aggressive behavior," with the union charging that Teamsters had filed thousands of contract violations grievances and multiple unfair labor practice complaints against its employer, according to CBC.Until the unions vote and accept an offer by the CP, the threat of a strike is still imminent. Stay tuned.