CN Rail cutting 1,600 jobs in Canada, U.S. as economy slows

Canadian National Railway announced Friday that it would cut both management and union jobs. The country’s largest railroad company is grappling with an economic slowdown.

The organization will terminate 1,600 employees in the United States and Canada, according to a report by the Globe and Mail.

The number of employees to be laid off could be increased if the demand from customers for rail service continues to decline, says a person familiar with Canadian National Railway. Freight volumes have been declining largely due to trade tensions.

CN Rail claims that the termination action has already begun, and has seen some employees placed on a temporary layoff.

Severance agreements for CN Rail employees

In Canada, non-unionized employees at CN Rail are owed full severance pay when they lose their jobs due to downsizing, corporate restructuring, or the closure of the business.

This includes individuals working full-time, part-time, or hourly in Ontario, Alberta, and B.C.

People working “on contract” or as a contractor may also be owed severance pay — given that many employees in Canada are often misclassified as independent contractors.

Severance can be as much as 24 months’ pay, depending on a number of factors.

LEARN MORE
• Rights to severance for federally regulated employees
• Severance entitlements during mass layoffs
• Severance packages in a recession

WATCH: Employment lawyer Lior Samfiru explains what rights employees have if they are being fired or let go on an episode of the Employment Law Show.

Before you accept any severance offer, have an experienced employment lawyer at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP review it and your employment contract.

We can tell you if what you have been provided is fair and how to get proper severance if it falls short of what you are actually owed.

If you don’t receive the full amount, which happens often, you have been wrongfully dismissed and are entitled to compensation.

In some cases, employers pressure staff into accepting poor severance packages, such as imposing a deadline for accepting the offer.

Non-unionized employees in Canada have up to two years from the date of their dismissal to pursue a claim for full severance pay.

Temporary layoffs could be illegal

It has been reported that some employees at the railroad giant will be placed on a temporary layoff. A temporary layoff allows an employer to essentially suspend an employee from the workplace without pay until such a time when the business requires their services once more.

What employees and employers must realize is that a temporary layoff is actually a constructive dismissal, in that the employee’s terms of employment have been drastically changed without the employee’s permission. In that case, the employee can choose to treat their termination as being ended, and can collect their full severance pay.

Temporary layoffs may be permissible if they have been agreed to in an employment contract, or the employer has put the employee on a temporary layoff before.

If you are an employee at Canadian National Railway that has been affected by these changes, please contact the employment lawyers at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP to get the advice you need, and the compensation you deserve.

Severance pay for unionized employees

If you are a unionized Canada Goose employee, your severance pay will be determined by the collective bargaining agreement struck between the company and your union.

An employment lawyer at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP can’t pursue your employment concerns on your behalf (i.e. you can’t hire an employment lawyer to file a wrongful dismissal claim against Canada Goose). Only the union has the legal ability to represent you.