The White House is again pressing rail worker’s unions to reach a deal to prevent a strike this weekend. Widespread railroad disruptions could choke supplies of food and fuel, creating economic chaos.
The White House is working with other transportation modes including truckers and air shippers “to see how they can step in and keep goods moving in case of a rail shutdown,” a White House official told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The official said the White House is holding daily interagency meetings to assess “what supply chains and commodities are most likely to face severe disruptions, and the emergency authorities available to keep goods moving.”
The unions have already been offered a significant pay increase, but are now pushing back on work rules that require employees to be on-call and available to work most days.
The White House has told all sides that “a shutdown is unacceptable and will hurt American workers, families, and businesses, and they must take action to avert it,” the official said.
According to Bloomberg, close to 125,000 railroad workers are prepared to walk off the job at the end of this week if companies don’t reach agreements with all the labor groups negotiating contracts now, raising the specter of a complete shutdown of the US rail system.
Presidential Emergency Board Recommendation
A resolution to adopt the Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) No. 250’s recommendations was introduced Sept. 12 by Senators Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) to prevent a “rail worker strike if contract negotiations are not soon resolved.”
A rail-worker strike would be catastrophic for America’s transportation system and our already-stressed supply chain,” Senator Richard Burr said in a statement. “The Biden administration should reject labor unions’ bullying tactics. This resolution would provide certainty for Americans who have a right to travel and work freely across state lines.”
While nine of 12 railroad unions involved in the dispute had reached or were close to reaching tentative agreements with freight carriers as of Monday, members of those unions also would refuse to work unless a deal is reached with the whole group, leaders said.
And according to CNBC today, the top labor negotiator in talks to avert a railroad strike accused BNSF and Union Pacific of holding up progress. Specifically, Dennis Pierce, president of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, or BLET, said the companies rejected the union’s proposal for sick time policies.
“The primary resistance comes from Union Pacific and BNSF because of the attendance policies they have adopted which have treated workers so poorly,” Pierce told CNBC.
“We’re just looking for time away from work to address our medical issues. Union Pacific and BNSF attendance policies are assessing (penalty) points to our members when they just want to take time off for their regular medical appointments.”
There has not been a nationwide U.S. rail service stoppage since 1992 when major freight railroads closed operations for two days. Railroads are struggling to rebuild employee ranks after slashing their workforce by almost 30 percent over the past six years.
