May 21, 2007:Traffic World, Journal of Commerce: Unionized track maintenance workers with Canadian Pacific Railway went on strike Wednesday after contract talks failed to produce an agreement.

Canada's second-largest railroad deployed managers to replace the 3,200 striking workers, represented by the Teamsters. The railroad said Wednesday that train service was operating normally despite union pickets, Bloomberg reported.

Canadian Pacific, headquartered in Calgary, offered wage increases of 3 percent this year, 4 percent in 2008 and 3 percent in 2009. The union sought a 13-percent raise over the three-year period. The most recent contract expired in December.

Earlier this year, a series of strikes by 2,800 Canadian National conductors and yard workers represented by the United Transportation Union ended when Parliament passed back-to-work legislation.

In Ottawa, Labor Minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn declined to answer questions from reporters about the possibility of back-to-work legislation in the Canadian Pacific dispute.