By IAN AUSTEN - New York Times, April 12, 2007

OTTAWA, April 11 ‹ Labor disruptions again hit the Canadian National Railway after workers overwhelmingly rejecting a tentative contract leading to pickets and lockouts in some cities.

A 15-day strike in February led to plant closings and shipping disruptions throughout North America, but the union said on Wednesday that it would try to limit the current walkout¹s impact on rail customers.

However, later in the day, the Montreal-based railroad locked out about 280 workers in five cities who had originally intended only to remain off the job for a few hours.

About 2,800 conductors and yard workers began a rotating strike after 79 percent of the members of the United Transportation Union at the railroad rejected a one-year agreement providing for a 3 percent wage increase and a signing bonus of 1,000 Canadian dollars ($870).

Tim Secord, the national legislative director of the Ottawa-based union, said the rotating pickets were re-established just before midnight Tuesday to pressure the railroad to resume talks.

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