Rail Duty and Rest Period Rules For Operating Employees
Location: National
Issue: Duty and rest period rules came into force for operating employees of freight railways on May 25, 2023.
Date: March 2024
Suggested Responses
- Transport Canada is committed to protecting all Canadians who live and work along rail lines by putting in place the necessary measures to reduce the risk of serious accidents.
- The new Duty and Rest Period Rules came fully into force for freight railways on May 25, 2023 and will come fully into effect for passenger railways in November 2024.
- The new rules require freight railway companies to restrict duty periods for operating employees, namely locomotive engineers and conductors.
- The rules reflect the latest in fatigue science and are intended to guard against cumulative fatigue and reduce probability of human errors leading to rail accidents.
- The new rules contain several significant improvements over the old rules including:
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- Reduction in the maximum length of a duty period from 16 hours to 12 hours;
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- New limits on total work hours: 60 hours per 7-day period; 192 hours per 28 day period; and
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- Longer rest periods between shifts.
- Transport Canada rail safety inspectors monitor compliance with the rules, and if non-compliance or a safety concern is found, the Department will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action.
- Transport Canada continues to work with industry and labour to identify measures to improve fatigue management and take action on this important safety issue.
If Pressed on the implementation of the DRPR:
- I am aware that some railway employees may be adversely affected by the implementation of these new rules. We continue to engage with railways and follow-up on employee concerns to ensure the new rules are being properly implemented.
Background Information
- In 2018, the Railway Safety Act Review Panel recommended that Transport Canada (TC) take a leadership role with respect to fatigue in the railway industry and regulate “prescriptive minimum criteria and non-prescriptive measures based on fatigue science”.
- From the early 1990s until mid-2022, the Transportation Safety Board has made findings or issued safety messages about sleep related fatigue in 32 rail occurrences. The issue of fatigue management in rail operations has been on the TSB Watchlist since 2016.
- In December 2018, the Minister of Transport issued a Ministerial Order instructing railway companies to revise the Work/Rest Rules for Railway Operating Employees to reflect the latest fatigue science and fatigue management practices.
- After extensive consultations with labour unions the industry submitted the Duty and Rest Period Rules for Railway Operating Employees (DRPR) on September 11, 2020, which were approved by TC on November 25, 2020 with a phased-in coming into force period.
- In the fall/winter of 2022/23, prior to the coming into force of the new Duty and Rest Period Rules for Railway Operating Employees, TC had considerable interaction with railways and labour unions regarding questions of interpretation.
- Transport Canada has issued guidance to assist in interpretation of the Duty and Rest Period Rules and continues to monitor compliance through oversight activities.
- Since the rules came into force on May 25, 2023, TC has received inquiries from railway operating employees around the calculation of how long they can work and when they must take rest. There have also been a small number of complaints stating the new rules limit the flexibility when employees can work and will therefore affect their income.