https://teamsters.ca/blog/2019/11/25/teamsters-release-recording-of-cn-ordering-fatigued-conductor-to-work/

You had to “be there” to know. Not everything makes it to the Internet.

Remember, CP(KC) and CN each have their own Union and Union Agreement. Each one fight for their right, separately in most cases, but sometimes it will have repercussions for the entire industry.

4-5 years ago when the strike(s) were happening there were crews being asked to take trains to the home terminal after their hours of service had expired. It was escalated to arbitration (where a judge decides and it is binding on both parties) and it ended up going in the Union’s favor and new rest rules were made for all companies in Canada not just CN.

But for the foreign leader issue, this goes to the Union Agreement clauses that CN and CP each separately negotiated when trains went Cabooseless and tail end brakeman positions were eliminated.

Each union won consessions that required some or all of: cloth seats, microwave, and hotplate in every lead locomotive.

American locomotives aren’t even known to have a bathroom (they give you bags) as they have basically zero amenities in them, especially back 20 years ago.

So if a train had a non Union compliant leader, they had the right to refuse. Management was saying “you can’t refuse, grieve it later” and they would send the train all the way to Toronto. Sometimes power was peeled off at Battle Creek, sometimes Sarnia, sometimes not at all. The idea was to keep fewer locomotives around wasting time/money and to use run-through power as it was perceived by Hunter Harrison et al as cheaper. But he didn’t know the power of the Canadian Unions.

well, after a few years it went to a grievance and arbitration and they lost around 2007. Foreign leaders continue to occur back then and into today, but there’s other reasons for that as well.

Foreign leaders today are more than likely compliant with their agreement and have a microwave, hotplate and cloth seats as amenities have become better for crews in the US. Also, it just may be a crew member doesn’t care and just takes it anyway.

But again every single locomotive has to be assessed at the crew terminal and the Engineer could refuse.. which is why many trains in Windsor and Sarnia get a new leader added.

The agreement is specific to Canadian crews only on CP(KC) and CN. Norfolk Southern in Canada had no such agreement and they were required to take whatever was given to them. The American roads that continue to operate into Canada (US crews or otherwise) also have their own agreement and none to my knowledge had the powers that CN and CP(KC) have. For each foreign company operating, Naturally they would always choose the “best” for them… they may wye the power to have the “best” locomotive lead. Why we didn’t see too many older engines lead in the latter years, the high nose would always trail for example. Probably had a bag for a bathroom.

I say this from a non railroader point of view of course. Railroaders and their unions have very differing opinions on the matter.