Via Rail averts strike with tentative with last-minute deal with Unifor

By The Canadian Press and Michael Ranger

Officials with Via Rail and Unifor Council 4000 and Local 100 have announced a tentative deal has been struck just ahead of a deadline that would have seen some 2,400 workers walk off the job.

A late-night statement from Via Rail says the deal, which still has to be ratified by the union, will be retroactive to Jan. 1, 2022 and in effect through Dec. 31, 2024.

“Via Rail is pleased to have negotiated these agreements and recognizes the hard work of both parties during this process,” reads a statement from CEO Martin R Landry.

“As we look forward to ratification, these tentative agreements allow our teams to get back to doing what we do best: serving Canadians throughout the country.”

Details of the new contract have not been released, but a statement from Unifor says they will be once it has been ratified by members.

With the strike averted, Via Rail noted that the tentative agreements give travelling Canadians a break from the uncertainty of a possible shutdown.

Unifor’s lead negotiator, Scott Doherty, offered up his thanks to the union members and the travelling public, “for their patience and support, while we continued to negotiate past the strike deadline to achieve this agreement.”

“Fighting back against the concessions that VIA proposed wasn’t easy, but the resolve, commitment and solidarity of our Via Rail members, helped the bargaining committees to push forward and achieve this tentative agreement.”

As talks continued to progress, the union offered to push back several deadlines that would have initiated the job action and derailed the company’s operations, coast to coast.

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