Revelstoke Times Review, May 14, 2014

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Rowland Bell in hospital, fighting for his life with very rare autoimmune system disorder — 7

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Weds., May 14, 2014 www.revelstoketimesreview.com Vol. 117, No. 20

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Labour blues at CP Rail Reduced rest and the new super pool causing work woes for CP Rail running trades workers Alex Cooper

editor@revelstoketimesreview.com

Ask any railroader in town their opinion on Hunter Harrison and you’ll almost certainly hear a string of expletives surrounding his name. Dubbed the “turnaround ace” in a recent Globe and Mail feature, the CP Rail CEO has been leaving his mark on the railway since taking over from Fred Green two years ago. He’s done wonders for shareholder value, laying off thousands of staff, moving the company’s headquarters from downtown Calgary to an industrial railyard in the southeast corner of the city. He’s taken what was considered North America’s poorest performing railway and turned it around — share prices have sky rocketed, but at the expense of workers and employee relations. When Harrison was appointed and company-wide layoffs were announced, I spoke to many conductors and engineers in town. Collectively known as the running trades, they didn’t seem too concerned about the new regime. “Somebody still has to drive the trains,” is a comment I heard frequently. Recent changes to working conditions have changed their tune. CP Rail has eliminated local provisions that allowed for 30 hours rest instead of the usual 24 hours, and the three working pools have been grouped into one, causing much bigger uncertainty about where and when they will be going to work. “All of these things, you just add them all up, and it puts them more off kilter all the time, and it has an effect on fatigue and how they work, planning their own personal life as well,” said Dave Able, the Teamsters general chairman for locomotive engineers. “It has a huge effect on lifestyle as well.” I spoke to Able after local union representatives declined to speak to us — a departure from the past when they used to speak freely about labour issues. Able, who is based in Calgary and nearing retirement, has been designated the spokesperson for the railroaders. He explained, on the record, what the impact of the changes are and why they’re an issue for the running trades.

Reduced rest Revelstoke Fire Rescue Services unveil their new aerial truck to the public at an open house at the fire hall on Saturday. Ladder 6, a 100-foot American LaFrance Aerial Platform Apparatus arrived in Revelstoke in January, replacing a 37-year-old vehicle. The truck, fully extended, towered over the 100 or so people in attendance. They were offered tours of the fire hall, a highway rescue demonstration and free burgers and cake that were served up the volunteer Alex Cooper/Revelstoke Times Review firefighters.

Since the early 1980’s, running trades in Revelstoke have been allowed 30 hours rest between shifts. The national collective bargaining agreement allowed for 24 hours, but local rules allotted 30. The extra six hours meant that if you were on an overnight shift, you had a

see CP Rail, page 5

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