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With “renewed” negotiations at a standstill between CN and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC), unresolved wage and benefit issues affecting 1,700 locomotive engineers will be submitted to binding arbitration, the Class I and union announced on Saturday.

As part of a settlement that ended the TCRC’s short strike on Dec. 2, CN and the union had agreed to third-party arbitration of wage and benefit issues if further talks failed to resolve contractual differences.

Canada’s labor minister now will appoint an arbitrator, who will have 90 days to submit a final decision to the minister on a new collective agreement. Negotiations can continue during the arbitration process, but a strike or lockout isn’t permitted by law.

Meanwhile, Ohio Central Railroad and Columbus & Ohio Rail Road Co. workers last week voted in favor of joining the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET). The National Mediation Board certified the election results, bringing 47 train and engine-service employees into the union’s ranks, the BLET said. The short lines are part of the Ohio Central Railroad System, which is owned by Genesee & Wyoming Inc.

In addition, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority and United Transportation Union (UTU) Local 1594 reached a tentative agreement covering Red Arrow Division trolley and bus operators. A ratification vote will be conducted soon, according to the UTU.