Rail strike impact: Federal intervention into work stoppage [Video]

OTTAWA –

Businesses and industry leaders are anxiously awaiting updates on when Canada’s freight trains could start moving again now that the federal government has intervened in a work stoppage that halted all shipments for a full day.

Following months of increasingly fraught bargaining, Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. and Canadian National Railway Co. locked out workers after the two sides failed to reach a deal by 12:01 a.m. eastern time on Thursday.

• Download the CTV News App for breaking news and video on all top stories
• IN PICTURES: CN Rail work stoppage creates commuter chaos

Later that day, federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon asked the Canada Industrial Relations Board to impose binding arbitration on the parties.

He also asked the board to order the railways to resume operations under the terms of the old collective agreement until new deals are in place.

Following the minister’s announcement, CN said in the evening that it had lifted its lockout in anticipation of …