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Key Takeaways
- U.S. cross-border trade could face a massive disruption later this week, as unionized workers Canada’s two largest railroad operators near a strike or lockout.
- The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference said on Sunday that it has served a 72-hour strike notice to Canadian Pacific Kansas City and received a 72-hour lockout notice from Canadian National Railway starting Thursday.
- In a statement Monday, European shipping giant A.P. Moller-Maersk said it would halt some Canada-bound shipments ahead of the strike.
U.S. cross-border trade could face a massive disruption later this week, as unionized workers at Canada’s two largest railroad operators near a strike or lockout.
The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference said on Sunday that it has both served a 72-hour strike notice to Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CP) and received a 72-hour lockout notice from Canadian National Railway (CNI) starting Thursday.
US Is Easily Canada’s Biggest Export Market
Canada’s economy is highly dependent on international trade, with exports and imports of goods and services each comprising about one-third of GDP. The U.S. is by far its largest export market.
In a statement Monday, European shipping giant A.P. Moller-Maersk said it would halt some Canada-bound shipments ahead of the potential rail stoppage.
Teamsters Canada, which has more than 130,000 members, says it is the nation’s largest transportation and supply-chain union, as well as the biggest union in the federally regulated private sector.