After the railway controllers, two other Montreal departments of Canadian National (CN) fear paying the price of a move from Montreal to Edmonton. To its employees in uncertainty, the nation’s largest railroad responds that it is “always looking for consolidation opportunities.”
The employees in question work in the customer service and rail transport departments. They are the ones, for example, who offer answers – in both official languages – to the company’s customers who want to know where their cars are.
There are around fifty of these employees in the metropolis, where the CN head office is also located. They work at the Taschereau marshalling yard. The trigger for the transfer rumors? A visit to the metropolis by the head of these departments, Jason Ho, based in Edmonton. The union says it happened around mid-August.
“He told members of my team that this [a transfer] was going to happen,” says the regional representative for Unifor Council 4000, Mario Laroche. It’s only a matter of time. There is no smoke without fire. »
The union representative is surprised by the turn of events, since these employees were among the approximately 3,000 Unifor members who ratified a new collective agreement last April. Subject to the Official Languages Act, the Canadian National Railway Company did not respond to questions sent by La Presse regarding the scenario offered by the union.
The last time unionized CN employees expressed concerns about a potential relocation of their jobs to the West, the scenario came to fruition about two months later.
By February 2020, just over 100 rail controllers had been affected. Linguistic concerns were immediately raised, given the difficulties in recruiting enough employees who are fluent in French in the Edmonton region. In spring 2022, La Presse revealed how difficult it could be for workers to express themselves in the language of Molière at work.
Mr. Laroche anticipates similar challenges if his fears materialize.
“Our members in Quebec, approximately 60% of customer service calls are made in French,” he says. If it is transferred to Edmonton, it will not be easy to find candidates who master the language. This has happened in the past with railway controllers and it is likely to happen again, but with customers. »
In early September, Unifor attempted to obtain an explanation from CN, but to no avail. On September 6, a union representative reported to the company’s director of labor relations, Line Tanguay, that rumors were circulating regarding a transfer of positions established in Montreal and Toronto to Edmonton.
“Can you confirm whether or not the company is considering this option, as we are also observing external job offers for positions to be filled in Edmonton,” Ms. Tanguay was asked.
This is essentially the same message that CN spokesperson Jonathan Abecassis conveyed in an email sent to La Presse. He added that the rail carrier ensures that it respects its linguistic obligations.
If the transfer goes through, Mr. Laroche fears he will not be able to re-place his affected members, who occupy “well-paid positions at $40 an hour.”
“There are fewer and fewer white-collar positions at CN in Montreal,” he says. We eliminate them one after the other. What I have left as a department after that is accounting, where specialization is required. The reality is that there could be direct job losses in Montreal. »