The strike had hampered operations on Canada's largest railroad and forced shippers in the country's forestry, auto and chemical industries to curtail production. The federal government was threatening to order an end to the walkout next week.

The United Transportation Union said it was urging the striking freight train conductors and switchyard employees to return to their jobs pending a ratification vote next month, but that the strike would not be officially over until workers approved the deal.

"We are hopeful that this will greatly reduce the possibility of the Canadian government continuing to move forward on back-to-work legislation," the union negotiators said in a statement.

Montreal-based Canadian National said it was pleased to have reached an agreement, but declined to speculate on how many workers it expected to return before the ratification vote was completed on March 26.

"We have said all along to those who wish to come back that the company will put them back to work," railroad spokesman Mark Hallman said.

Canadian National had been using management crews to replace the striking workers, but shippers had complained the railroad was operating at only about half capacity.

Neither the company nor the union was releasing details of the agreement until they were provided to the workers, but a copy of the deal leaked over the Internet said it was a one-year contract with a 3 percent wage hike and C$1,000 ($860) bonus.

The previous contract expired at the end of 2006.

The unionized workers walked out on Feb. 10 in a dispute involving wages and work rules, including disciplinary policy and rest breaks.

Canadian National had been using management crews to replace the striking workers, but shippers had complained the railroad was operating at only about half capacity.

UNION INFIGHTING

The strike had sparked a public battle within the union that saw UTU's international headquarters in Cleveland replace its Canadian negotiators last week. The new negotiating team reached this deal.

The suspended negotiators were accused by the UTU of launching the walkout in a secret plan to have the Canadian workers join the rival Teamsters union, which already represents Canadian National's locomotive engineers.

Neither the company nor UTU officials would speculate on how the union's internal fight, and the Teamsters' efforts to solicit disgruntled UTU members, would affect the outcome of the ratification vote.

The union's negotiators said in a letter to the workers that because the government was threatening to to intervene, they were not about to deal with many of the demands for work- rule changes made before the strike.

The government's proposed back-to-work legislation would have allowed a federal arbitrator to decide the terms of a final contract, the union negotiators said in the letter that was leaked along with the proposed contract.

"We do believe that this tentative agreement if ratified will allow the union time to regroup and get back to the bargaining table in approximately seven months time and deal with outstanding issues," the negotiators said in a letter to UTU members.

Canadian National and the union had proposed three-year contracts before the strike began.

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Deal reached to end CN Rail strike

Global Mail: 24/02/07

MONTREAL — CN and the United Transportation Union say they have reached a tentative deal to end a strike by 2,800 railway conductors and yard-service workers.

The union says it is maintaining its strike mandate but is urging its members to return to their jobs pending a ratification vote.

Results of the vote will not be available until near the end of March.

Union members will be mailed a copy of the tentative agreement along with a ballot on Monday, and they will have until March 26 to mail in their ballots. The ballots will be counted in Ottawa the same day.

"The 2,800 employees and members of the union, which are conductors and yard-service employees, remain on strike pending ratification," Mark Hallman, spokesman for CN management, told The Canadian Press late Saturday.

"We, at this time, continue to have management personnel filling in for striking UTU members, but, we do note that the union is urging its members to return to work during the ratification process and we're encouraged by that," said Hallman.

UTU spokesman Frank Wilner confirmed that the transit union would be encouraging its workers to return to work.

"We are asking our members to go back to work immediately," said Wilner.

CN continues to offer freight service with management personnel filling in for the strikers. Passenger and commuter train service have not been affected.

On Friday, the federal government tabled legislation ordering the striking employees back to work, warning of potential economic chaos from a walkout that has already hurt key industries.

Labour Minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn told the House of Commons that the strike couldn't be allowed to continue in the face of layoffs, backlogs and supply shortages throughout industry and in communities across the country.

MPs are scheduled to deal with the legislation this week.

Chief union negotiators John Armstrong and Robert Sharpe said in a release that they hope the union's call for workers to return to their jobs "will greatly reduce the possibility of the Canadian government continuing to move forward on back-to-work legislation until such time as the ratification process is completed and the results are known."

Federal Labour Ministry officials were not immediately available for comment.