Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP calls for abolition of private rail police

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Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Taylor Bachrach speaks in the House of Commons during question period on February 11, 2022. (Photo: Bernard Thibodeau, House of Commons Photo Services)

Allowing rail companies to investigate themselves is a ‘cruel conflict of interest’: Bachrach

Federal NDP transport critic Taylor Bachrach and labor critic Alexandre Boulerice have called on the Liberal government to abolish private rail police and stop allowing major rail companies to investigate themselves when workers are injured or killed on the job.

The two MPs were joined in the House of Commons by people who have lost loved ones in railway accidents.

“No worker should have to worry about their well-being while at work. But railroad workers have been seriously injured and some have been killed while working because of unsafe working conditions, Bachrach said.

“And instead of having impartial investigations when there are fatal incidents, it is the rail companies’ own private police forces that investigate. History has shown that these companies prioritize profit over people. Allowing them to investigate themselves creates a serious conflict of interest.” Bachrach said

Last spring, a Transportation Committee report recommended changes to Canada’s Railway Safety Act to address the conflict of interest that exists when rail companies use private police to conduct investigations.

The NDP calls for the creation of an independent rail police force, funded by rail companies and accountable to a civilian oversight commission.

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