Agreement reached to end CP Rail strike Feb 15, 2015 2:32 PM

Dozens of boots continued to pace up and down the sidewalk outside of the main Canadian Pacific Railway office in Saskatoon, legislation was introduced in Ottawa, but it was an agreement between the two parties which ended the CP Rail strike Monday afternoon.

The House of Commons was in the process of debating legislation that would have seen the back-to-work legislation rushed through when Federal Labour Minister Kellie Leitch said the CP Railway strike was over, with both sides agreeing to resume discussions.

In a sudden, surprise news conference, Leitch welcomed the sudden willingness by both sides to resume talks, a development that had seemed impossible just hours earlier. Leitch has said the strike could cost the economy more than $200 million in lost GDP every week.

“The membership (was) disappointed and frustrated that the government would step in so quickly and not allow the collective bargaining process to come to fruition,” strike captain Division 793 Teamsters Canada Doug Fast explained in the morning.