It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
CN Strike No Hinderance To Honorary Degree
CN strike resumes Despite CN workers rejecting CN's earlier contract offer in an overwhelming vote, CN CEO E. Hunter Harrison will still receive his honorary degree from the University of Alberta for Leadership in Business. LOL.
See
CN
Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
UTU, Canada, railroad, CN, strike, workers, trains, train,
unions, labour, strike, Hunter Harrison,labor, workers, railroad, CN, disaster, accident,
derailment, train,
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Criminal Capitalist Gets Honorary Degree
The U of A does it again. Celebrating criminal capitalism by giving an honorary degree to E. Hunter Harrison of CN. Heck he is the perfect model for a MBA think of all his successes; the accidents, environmental damage, job losses, and forcing workers to strike. If he is one of the top executives in his field then perhaps they should consider Conrad Black for an honorary degree next year.
SeeIn making its choices, the university made sure to pick a diverse group of leaders from the fields of art, science, business, and community involvement, U of A chancellor Eric Newell said.
Among the selections, the choice of Harrison has the potential to cause some controversy since it was one of his company’s trains that derailed and spilled oil into Wabamun Lake in 2005.
CN was criticized for its handling of the incident in the early days following the spill.
But Newell said Harrison is a worthy choice to speak to business graduates because he is widely recognized as one of the top executives in his field, and CN’s operational headquarters are based in Edmonton.
CN
Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
UTU, Canada, railroad, CN, strike, workers, trains, train,
unions, labour, strike, Hunter Harrison,labor, workers, railroad, CN, disaster, accident,
derailment, train,
Friday, February 23, 2007
CN not hurting
CN awaits the State to legislate UTU workers back to work. They have made no effort to deliver just in time.
Rather they would sacrifice Canadians needs on the backs of their workers. It is after all a sure fire way of increasing your stock price. And your salary.
Ironically 'precision railroad' sounds a lot like precision model trains, and that is how Hunter Harrison has been running CN. Like his own toy railroad in his rec room. Or should that be wreck room?
The bottom line: Did CN push too hard?
In his four years at the throttle, Hunter Harrison has revolutionized how CN Rail does business, driving productivity, boosting the stock price by 150 per cent and making $56-million in 2005 for himself in his pursuit of a "precision railroad."
Five day stock price during strike
CNR (Canadian National Railway Company ) Last: $54.45 Change: +0.51 (+0.95%) Revenue (ttm): $7,716.0M EPS: 3.91 Market Cap: $27,493.13M Time: 4:23pm ET
The strike is unlikely to have much of an impact on Canada's economy if it's settled within a month, Robert Hogue, a Bank of Montreal economist, said today in a report. ``While the current impact on business and many remote communities can be heavy, much of the broader economic toll, if any, will only surface if the strike carries on significantly longer,'' Hogue said.
The government is using the pretext of inconvenience to bring in Back To Work Legislation today. But inconvenience by whom?
Blaming the workers instead of CN which refuses to bargain. Notice the State always brings in " back to work" legislation, never back to bargaining legislation. And notice who is returning to work for the good of the country.
SeeLee Rawsthorne of the United Transportation Union local in Winnipeg said the returnees include about 150 workers in Winnipeg, roughly 30 in Dauphin and about six in Brandon.
Workers in Melville, Sask., are also reported to have laid down their picket signs.
Rawsthorne said the national union may not approve of the return to the job, but he said workers felt it was the right thing to do.
"It was never our intention to damage our country," he told CBC News. "It was to try to negotiate a deal.
CN
Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
UTU, Canada, railroad, CN, strike, workers, trains, train,
unions, labour, strike, Hunter Harrison,labor, workers, Canada
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Could CN Bring Down Harper?
Back to work legislation is what CN was hoping for, thus they have refused to bargain. Which is why the Government stepped away from the strike hoping it would go away. It didn't and now they are over ruling their own Labour Board and trying to bring in back to work legislation. When it comes to CN they may be privatized but the State still gives them preferential treatment they got when they were a Crown Corporation.
Now if the Canadian UTU were really militant it would refuse to go back to work. Even if legislated back. Which CUPW did many years ago even though the Government jailed its leadership. Making them Labour Martyrs for years after.
As it is even an attempt to pass the legislation tonight in the House could be defeated. Which is what UTU is hoping for.....high hopes...like that ant and the rubber tree plant.
Ironically the last time CN workers were legislated back to work was when the company was still a Crown Corporation.
Government readies back-to-work order as CN strikers reject voluntary return
The Canada Industrial Relations Board refused to rule the wages-based strike illegal Monday after Blackburn said he wanted the dispute "ended in hours, not days."
The union had said it would send its members back if CN's request for a back-to-work order were approved by the board.
Asked how the union would respond to a legislated order, Wilner said: "Well, they have to get it passed first. Our understanding is that they don't have the votes and they could wind up having to call new elections if they fail."
There is plenty of precedent for federal back-to-work legislation, particularly in the railway sector. Such laws have been enacted 31 times since 1950, including six times in the rail industry, most recently in 1995.See
Scab Trains Go Off The Tracks
CN Whines
CN Wildcat
American Union Bosses
Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
UTU, Canada, railroad, CN, strike, workers, trains, train,
unions, labour, strike, Hunter Harrison,labor, workers, Canada
Monday, February 12, 2007
CN Whines
CN says striking conductors' wage demands too high
Oh really. I think not. Not after record profits and cost cutting that has reduced jobs and has resulted in numerous accidents that endanger their workers, the public and the environment.
UTU asked for wage increases of 4.5 percent in the first two years of a three-year contract and 4 percent in the third, CN said. "The UTU's final offer on lump sum bonus payments - C$1,000 ($840) per year over the three-year period - was three times greater than the other recent agreements," CN said.
Ah. cry me a river.
CN is demanding a flat wage rate. Where it has won those concessions in the U.S. the rail workers are now doing twelve hour shifts. Gone is the eight hour day.
Report on Business Top 1000 listed the productivity of CN workers,
RANK | COMPANY (Year-End) | EMPLOYEES | HEAD OFFICE | REVENUE/ EMPLOYEE | PROFIT/ EMPLOYEE |
---|
34. Canadian National Railway (De05) | 21,540 | Montreal,QC | $336,676 | $74,420 |
So each worker at CN produced a gross revenue of over three hundred thousand dollars for the company and made CN a profit of $74,000 each, thats after their wages, benefits, company taxes etc. had been paid out.
After all labour produces all wealth, all wealth belongs to labour.
Here is CN's ten year stock chart.
Not exactly boom and bust, just one long boom.
Paid for by CN workers and CN's disregard for public safety.
And while CN whines about paying out $1000 signing bonus spread over three years, thats a big $333 a year, to their workers, here is what Hunter Harrison earned in 2005.
He is the second highest paid CEO in Canada.
Canadian National Railway Co. | Harrison, Hunter | $56,219,496 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
That means Hunter earns a cool $29,281 a day!!! While begrudging CN workers a measly 4% wage increase and a pitiful signing bonus over three years. Yet each worker produces a profit of $74,000 each, which goes to Hunter and his Shareholders.
Ain't capitalism grand.
See
Time to Nationalize CN
CEO'sCN
Productivity
Wealth
Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
railroad, CN, disaster, accident,
derailment, train,
UTU, unions, labour, strike, Hunter Harrison,labor, workers, Canada