‘Long Tail’: Rail Shutdown Ends, but Aftershocks Ripple Amid Drawn-Out Ramp-Up

Train cars are seen on the tracks in an aerial view at Canadian National Rail's Thornton Yard as the Port Mann Bridge spans the Fraser River, in Surrey, B.C., on Aug. 22, 2024. The Canadian Press/Darryl Dyck

The end of the shutdown at Canada’s two major railways came too late for the workers at Conifex Timber.

Some 250 employees felt the impact when the company cut the operating schedule in half at its sawmill in Mackenzie, B.C., starting Monday—the day the work stoppage on the tracks wraps up.