Canadian National Railway CNR, one of Canada’s two major railway companies, officially notified the Teamsters union in Canada on Sunday that it will begin a lockout of union workers early Thursday.
“If there is no immediate and definitive solution to the labour dispute, CN will have no choice but to continue the gradual shutdown of its network, which would culminate in a lockout,” it said in a statement.
“Despite the negotiations over the weekend, there has been no significant progress and the parties remain very far apart
The other major Canadian rail operator, Canadian Pacific Kansas City 
CP, has already notified the Teamsters union that it will begin locking out its members early Thursday. This means that most rail freight traffic in Canada would come to a halt on Thursday unless a last-minute agreement is reached between the companies and their respective Teamsters union branches.
Separately, the Teamsters issued a 72-hour strike notice to CPKC late Sunday.
“If the parties do not reach a last-minute agreement, work will cease at 12:01 a.m. on Thursday, August 22,” it said in a statement.
The companies and the union accuse each other of dishonesty in the talks. The Teamsters claim that CN Rail and CPKC are seeking concessions that could jeopardize worker safety, which both companies deny.
The liberal federal government has so far rejected requests from business associations to intervene and said it wants the companies and the union to resolve their differences through negotiations.
