Labor stoppage imminent for Canada’s freight rail network: Canada’s freight rail network could possibly stop operations this week after Canada’s two largest railroad operators issued lockout orders on Sunday amid a dispute with the country’s Teamsters union, Reuters reported yesterday. The two railroad operators — Canadian National Railway and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) — have said they would lock out workers on Thursday unless agreements are reached. Both operators have indicated that their networks outside of Canada will continue to operate, although stoppages could have knock-on effects.

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What’s the dispute? The Canadian National Railway says that it made four offers this year on issues including wages, rest, and labor availability, while the CPKC dispute centers on safety concerns. The union says that CPKC wants "to gut the collective agreement of all safety-critical fatigue provisions,” which would mean that crews will be forced to stay awake longer, increasing the risk of accidents.

What’s the potential impact? The stoppages could affect the shipment of food grains, beans, potash, coal, and timber, which constitute a large portion of Canada’s exports. Shipments ranging from petroleum products to chemicals and cars could also be impacted, and the stoppages could inflict an economic toll and could potentially disrupt rail trade across North America.

With some already taking action ahead of the possible strike: Shipping giant Maersk has announced that it will not be accepting some Canada-bound shipments in light of the strike, Reuters reported. Others see a limited impact on oil exports to the US due to excess pipeline capacity, Reuters cited industry experts as saying. “We’re closely monitoring the situation and putting plans in place to mitigate any impacts if a strike or lockout were to happen,” a spokesperson of crude producer Cenovus Energy was quoted as saying by the newswire.

MEANWHILE- UK cargo airline turns elsewhere for service amid Brexit red tape: UK cargo airline One Air has been forced to fly as far as the US for routine service and repairs to avoid obstacles caused by post-Brexit regulations, generating hefty financial and environmental costs, its CEO Chris Hope told TheGuardian earlier this week.

The problem: Under the Brexit agreement, EU-based aircraft engineering firms had the opportunity to seek recognition in the UK by the end of 2022, but none applied for certification for 747s. “In the seven months of this calendar year so far, we’ve had two [services] that had to go to the US. The kind of incremental cost difference is approaching USD 500k for each of them,” Hope said.

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