Families of Railway Workers Continue Their FightThe families of rail workers who lost their lives working for CN and CP are once more taking action in their fight for justice for their loved ones and all rail workers. They have launched two new petitions, "Demand an Inquiry into Rail Policing" and "Protect TSB Whistle Blowers." The petitions continue the fight for safe conditions for workers, passengers, communities and all those impacted by the railways.
Both Teamsters Canada, which represents over 16,000 railway workers in Canada, and the Alberta Federation of Labour have demanded an independent investigation into the deaths of the three workers in the Field derailment and a petition was launched at that time demanding an independent criminal investigation.[2] Speaking out when the criminal investigation into the 2019 disaster was announced, Teamsters Canada President François Laporte stated, "The union is also reiterating its call for the federal government to abolish corporate police forces. Three of our brothers died in that derailment. If CP has nothing to hide they should welcome an outside investigation for the sake of the families and all those affected by this disaster." "Moreover, corporate police forces have no place in the modern world. It is absurd that a company should be able to criminally investigate itself. They'll never find themselves guilty of anything. We once again call on the government of Canada to abolish all forms of private policing," Laporte said.
The Teamsters report that, "A TSB investigator was punished in 2019 for even suggesting possible criminal negligence in the Field derailment that killed three of our Teamster brothers. Clearly, the law ties the hands of the very public servants who are best qualified to facilitate justice for victims of railway incidents and to protect the public." The petitions have been posted on the Teamsters Canada website. "After countless deaths, derailments, and injuries, the need for reform has never been more obvious. We ask that you please sign these petitions. Don't forget to share this page with your friends once you are done," the union says. Workers' Forum calls on everyone to stand with the rail workers and their families in common cause to end workplace injuries and death and to defend the rights of all. To sign the petitions, click
here. Notes:1. Three rail workers were killed on February 4, 2019 when their runaway train derailed and plunged 60 metres from a bridge into the Kicking Horse River in BC, near the town of Field, after its air brake system failed. The mother of Dylan Paradis, one of the workers, filed a complaint with the RCMP in November 2020 demanding an investigation into potential negligence in the crash and obstruction by the railway in investigating the crash. The following month the RCMP's major crimes unit in British Columbia opened a criminal investigation into the crash and allegations of a cover-up at Canadian Pacific Railway. 2. See "Demands for Action in Defence of Rail Workers' Safety: Investigation Launched into 2019 Derailment," Workers' Forum, February 8, 2021.
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The first
petition, "Demand an Inquiry into Rail
Policing," calls for a national inquiry under
the Inquiries Act
to determine the consequences of Canada's
private railway
self-investigation model on the criminal
investigation of thousands of
railway fatalities, serious injuries,
explosions, and environmental
disasters. The petition states that with the
exception of the criminal
investigation announced by the RCMP into the
2019 fatal derailment near
Field, BC, private railway police forces have
asserted exclusive jurisdiction over rail
disasters, including cases
where the police forces' corporate owners were
implicated.[
The second
petition, "Protect TSB Whistleblowers," calls
for changes to the Canadian Transportation
Accident Investigation and Safety Board Act to authorize Transportation Safety Board (TSB)
investigators to refer
potential criminal violations to the RCMP and
Canada's
attorneys general. The petition also calls for
the
inclusion of TSB investigators in the Public
Servants Disclosure Protection Act.