THE FIGHT FOR SICK TIME
As Strike Looms, Sanders Blocks GOP Bill to Force Rail Workers Into Deal With No Sick Days
"Republicans are viciously against collective bargaining, but carriers are going to have to respect people's lives and there's going to have to be respect for these workers," said one labor leader.
Workers service trains in the Amtrak Car Yard on September 13, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois. Amtrak announced that it will temporarily cancel three of its long-distance, nationwide routes that run out of Chicago and rely on freight lines, citing a potential strike from railroad workers. (Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images)
JULIA CONLEY
"Republicans are viciously against collective bargaining, but carriers are going to have to respect people's lives and there's going to have to be respect for these workers," said one labor leader.
Workers service trains in the Amtrak Car Yard on September 13, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois. Amtrak announced that it will temporarily cancel three of its long-distance, nationwide routes that run out of Chicago and rely on freight lines, citing a potential strike from railroad workers. (Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images)
JULIA CONLEY
September 14, 2022
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday afternoon stood up against Republicans' attempt to force 115,000 railroad workers to accept a contract recommended by a presidential board last month, saying the GOP wants to hinder the workers' fight "for sick leave and better working conditions."
Before taking to the Senate floor, Sander (I-Vt.) tweeted that "I will proudly stand up to stop" the legislation proposed by Sens. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Richard Burr (R-N.C.).
The Presidential Emergency Board (PEB), a nonpartisan panel appointed by President Joe Biden last month, recommended that rail carriers and union workers accept a contract with wage increases, but unions expressed outrage that the recommendations did not include a paid sick leave policy or address stringent "points-based" attendance rules which requires engineers and conductors to work many days—and sometimes consecutive weeks or months—with no time off, to make up for taking a weekend off.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Tuesday said the contract recommended by the PEB should be accepted and called on Biden to push for its adoption, but Democratic leaders have expressed hope that railway carriers and the workers' unions can come to an agreement before 12:01 am Eastern Time on Friday, when workers can strike.
"Democrats are not going to impose these contracts without dealing with the issue of workers' working lives," Larry Cohen, former president of the Communication Workers of America, told The Washington Post. "Republicans are viciously against collective bargaining, but carriers are going to have to respect people's lives and there's going to have to be respect for these workers. They're not getting a settlement without it."
On the Senate floor Wednesday, Sanders condemned the rail industry for trying to pressure workers into accepting working conditions which he called "absolutely unacceptable" and "almost beyond belief," noting that rail carriers have "seen huge profits in recent years."
In 2021, the Vermont Independent senator noted, carriers "made a record-breaking $20 billion in profit" while "the CEOs of many of these rail companies are enjoying huge compensation packages."
"In the midst of all of those profit increases for the industry, what's going on for the workers?" he asked, before saying railroad engineers are "entitled to a grand total of zero sick days."
Unions and carriers are under pressure to reach an agreement, as a strike would temporarily harm supply chains across the nation.
On Wednesday, Amtrak announced it would cancel long-distance trips starting Thursday in anticipation of the strike.
Labor reporter Jonah Furman argued that the current threat to railroad operations is not a potential strike over unfair working conditions, but a "lockout" controlled solely by powerful railroad companies.
"There is not a single worker on strike on the U.S. rails right now," said Furman. "There are CEOs shutting down rail lines and withholding goods to shock Congress into forcing a deal on 100,000 workers."
According to Sanders, what Congress should be doing "is telling the CEOs in the rail industry: Treat your workers with dignity and respect, not contempt."
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday afternoon stood up against Republicans' attempt to force 115,000 railroad workers to accept a contract recommended by a presidential board last month, saying the GOP wants to hinder the workers' fight "for sick leave and better working conditions."
Before taking to the Senate floor, Sander (I-Vt.) tweeted that "I will proudly stand up to stop" the legislation proposed by Sens. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Richard Burr (R-N.C.).
The Presidential Emergency Board (PEB), a nonpartisan panel appointed by President Joe Biden last month, recommended that rail carriers and union workers accept a contract with wage increases, but unions expressed outrage that the recommendations did not include a paid sick leave policy or address stringent "points-based" attendance rules which requires engineers and conductors to work many days—and sometimes consecutive weeks or months—with no time off, to make up for taking a weekend off.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Tuesday said the contract recommended by the PEB should be accepted and called on Biden to push for its adoption, but Democratic leaders have expressed hope that railway carriers and the workers' unions can come to an agreement before 12:01 am Eastern Time on Friday, when workers can strike.
"Democrats are not going to impose these contracts without dealing with the issue of workers' working lives," Larry Cohen, former president of the Communication Workers of America, told The Washington Post. "Republicans are viciously against collective bargaining, but carriers are going to have to respect people's lives and there's going to have to be respect for these workers. They're not getting a settlement without it."
On the Senate floor Wednesday, Sanders condemned the rail industry for trying to pressure workers into accepting working conditions which he called "absolutely unacceptable" and "almost beyond belief," noting that rail carriers have "seen huge profits in recent years."
In 2021, the Vermont Independent senator noted, carriers "made a record-breaking $20 billion in profit" while "the CEOs of many of these rail companies are enjoying huge compensation packages."
"In the midst of all of those profit increases for the industry, what's going on for the workers?" he asked, before saying railroad engineers are "entitled to a grand total of zero sick days."
Unions and carriers are under pressure to reach an agreement, as a strike would temporarily harm supply chains across the nation.
On Wednesday, Amtrak announced it would cancel long-distance trips starting Thursday in anticipation of the strike.
Labor reporter Jonah Furman argued that the current threat to railroad operations is not a potential strike over unfair working conditions, but a "lockout" controlled solely by powerful railroad companies.
"There is not a single worker on strike on the U.S. rails right now," said Furman. "There are CEOs shutting down rail lines and withholding goods to shock Congress into forcing a deal on 100,000 workers."
According to Sanders, what Congress should be doing "is telling the CEOs in the rail industry: Treat your workers with dignity and respect, not contempt."
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
RR WORKERS GET ZERO SICK TIME
1 of 13
The key unions that represent the conductors and engineers who drive trains are holding out in the hope that railroads will agree to go beyond those recommendations and address some of their concerns about unpredictable schedules and strict attendance policies that they say make it difficult to take any time off. They say the job cuts major railroads have made over the past six years — eliminating nearly one-third of their workers — have made a difficult job even harder although the railroads maintain their operations have just become more efficient as they rely on fewer, longer trains.
The unions want the railroads to provide unpaid leave time that workers could use to attend doctors appointments or attend to other personal business without being penalized.
Ron Kaminkow, general secretary of the Railroad Workers United labor group that includes workers from all the rail unions, said he left the freight industry for an Amtrak engineer job in Nevada years ago because of the grueling working conditions that have only gotten worse in recent years. He’s seen many other workers make that switch even though it often comes with lower pay and means giving up seniority
“Everyone knows you can get more money in the freight industry. But it’s what we would call blood money,” Kaminkow said. “It’s almost impossible to predict when you are going to be off and when you can attend to various life issues like family, like children, like an appointment.”
Contract talks continued Wednesday with Labor Secretary Marty Walsh participating again to put pressure on both sides to reach a deal before Friday’s deadline.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told reporters at the Detroit auto show Wednesday that the Biden administration remains focused on preventing a strike. Biden himself made calls earlier this week, but the administration is preparing to respond if a walkout does happen.
“We’ve been engaging with the parties, and our message continues to be that the labor unions and railroads need to find the deal space to avoid any kind of disruption,” he said. “The most important thing is to try to prevent that from happening in the first place.”
If the two sides can’t agree, Congress could step in to block a strike and impose terms on the railroads and unions, but it wasn’t clear Wednesday how quickly they could or would act because Democrats and Republicans can’t readily agree on a solution. A number of business groups have written letters to lawmakers over the past week urging them to be prepared to step in because of their concerns that a rail strike would be what the Business Roundtable called an “economic catastrophe.”
With the midterm elections just weeks away, politics will play a role if Congress has to settle this dispute. Democrats are wary of becoming crosswise with their allies in organized labor, as unions tend to be strong supporters in elections. At the same time, Republicans see an opportunity to put pressure on Biden and his party if the railroads teeter toward a strike. But it’s entirely possible that all sides would be blamed for a rail shutdown.
The many businesses that rely on railroads to deliver their raw materials and finished products say a rail strike would cause significant problems particularly for oil refineries, chemical businesses, auto makers, retailers and agricultural groups. The Association of American Railroads trade group estimated that a strike would cost the economy more than $2 billion a day.
Businesses would likely try to turn to trucks and other modes of shipping if the railroads do shut down, but there isn’t enough trucking capacity to take up all the slack. The railroad trade group estimated that 467,000 additional trucks a day would be required to deliver everything railroads handle now.
A freight rail strike would also disrupt passenger traffic because Amtrak and many commuter railroads operate on tracks owned by the freight railroads. Amtrak has already canceled a number of its long-distance trains this week, and it said the rest of its long-distance trains would stop Thursday ahead of the strike deadline.
___
Associated Press writers Tom Krisher, Anne D’Innocenzio, Lisa Mascaro, Cathy Bussewitz, Chris Rugaber, Scott McFetridge and Matt Ott contributed to this report.
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A worker boards a locomotive at a BNSF rail yard Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022, in Kansas City, Kan. Business and government officials are preparing for a potential nationwide rail strike at the end of this week while talks carry on between the largest U.S. freight railroads and their unions. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Members of one union rejected a tentative deal with the largest U.S. freight railroads Wednesday, while two ratified agreements and three others remained at the bargaining table just days ahead of a strike deadline, threatening to intensify snarls in the nation’s supply chain that have contributed to rising prices.
About 4,900 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 19 voted to reject the tentative agreement negotiated by IAM leadership with the railroads, the union said Wednesday. But the IAM agreed to delay any strike by its members until Sept. 29 to allow more time for negotiations and to allow other unions to vote.
Railroads are trying to reach an agreement with all their other unions to avert a strike before Friday’s deadline. The unions aren’t allowed to strike before Friday under the federal law that governs railroad contract talks, which include BNSF, Union Pacific, Norfolk Southern, CSX, Kansas City Southern and the U.S. operations of Canadian National.
Government officials and a variety of businesses are bracing for the possibility of a nationwide rail strike that would paralyze shipments of everything from crude and clothing to cars, a potential calamity for businesses that have struggled for more than two years due to COVID-19 related supply chain breakdowns.
There are 12 unions — one with two separate divisions — representing 115,000 workers that must agree to the tentative deals and then have members vote on whether to approve them. So far, nine had agreed to tentative deals and three others are still at the bargaining table.
Of the nine that agreed to the deals, two — the Transportation Communications Union and the Brotherhood of Railway Carmen unions — voted to ratify their contracts Wednesday. But IAM members voted to reject their deal. Votes by the other six unions that approved tentative deals are pending.
All the tentative deals are based closely on the recommendations of a Presidential Emergency Board Joe Biden appointed this summer that called for 24% raises and $5,000 in bonuses in a five-year deal that’s retroactive to 2020. Those recommendations also includes one additional paid leave day a year and higher health insurance costs.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Members of one union rejected a tentative deal with the largest U.S. freight railroads Wednesday, while two ratified agreements and three others remained at the bargaining table just days ahead of a strike deadline, threatening to intensify snarls in the nation’s supply chain that have contributed to rising prices.
About 4,900 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 19 voted to reject the tentative agreement negotiated by IAM leadership with the railroads, the union said Wednesday. But the IAM agreed to delay any strike by its members until Sept. 29 to allow more time for negotiations and to allow other unions to vote.
Railroads are trying to reach an agreement with all their other unions to avert a strike before Friday’s deadline. The unions aren’t allowed to strike before Friday under the federal law that governs railroad contract talks, which include BNSF, Union Pacific, Norfolk Southern, CSX, Kansas City Southern and the U.S. operations of Canadian National.
Government officials and a variety of businesses are bracing for the possibility of a nationwide rail strike that would paralyze shipments of everything from crude and clothing to cars, a potential calamity for businesses that have struggled for more than two years due to COVID-19 related supply chain breakdowns.
There are 12 unions — one with two separate divisions — representing 115,000 workers that must agree to the tentative deals and then have members vote on whether to approve them. So far, nine had agreed to tentative deals and three others are still at the bargaining table.
Of the nine that agreed to the deals, two — the Transportation Communications Union and the Brotherhood of Railway Carmen unions — voted to ratify their contracts Wednesday. But IAM members voted to reject their deal. Votes by the other six unions that approved tentative deals are pending.
All the tentative deals are based closely on the recommendations of a Presidential Emergency Board Joe Biden appointed this summer that called for 24% raises and $5,000 in bonuses in a five-year deal that’s retroactive to 2020. Those recommendations also includes one additional paid leave day a year and higher health insurance costs.
The key unions that represent the conductors and engineers who drive trains are holding out in the hope that railroads will agree to go beyond those recommendations and address some of their concerns about unpredictable schedules and strict attendance policies that they say make it difficult to take any time off. They say the job cuts major railroads have made over the past six years — eliminating nearly one-third of their workers — have made a difficult job even harder although the railroads maintain their operations have just become more efficient as they rely on fewer, longer trains.
The unions want the railroads to provide unpaid leave time that workers could use to attend doctors appointments or attend to other personal business without being penalized.
Ron Kaminkow, general secretary of the Railroad Workers United labor group that includes workers from all the rail unions, said he left the freight industry for an Amtrak engineer job in Nevada years ago because of the grueling working conditions that have only gotten worse in recent years. He’s seen many other workers make that switch even though it often comes with lower pay and means giving up seniority
“Everyone knows you can get more money in the freight industry. But it’s what we would call blood money,” Kaminkow said. “It’s almost impossible to predict when you are going to be off and when you can attend to various life issues like family, like children, like an appointment.”
Contract talks continued Wednesday with Labor Secretary Marty Walsh participating again to put pressure on both sides to reach a deal before Friday’s deadline.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told reporters at the Detroit auto show Wednesday that the Biden administration remains focused on preventing a strike. Biden himself made calls earlier this week, but the administration is preparing to respond if a walkout does happen.
“We’ve been engaging with the parties, and our message continues to be that the labor unions and railroads need to find the deal space to avoid any kind of disruption,” he said. “The most important thing is to try to prevent that from happening in the first place.”
If the two sides can’t agree, Congress could step in to block a strike and impose terms on the railroads and unions, but it wasn’t clear Wednesday how quickly they could or would act because Democrats and Republicans can’t readily agree on a solution. A number of business groups have written letters to lawmakers over the past week urging them to be prepared to step in because of their concerns that a rail strike would be what the Business Roundtable called an “economic catastrophe.”
With the midterm elections just weeks away, politics will play a role if Congress has to settle this dispute. Democrats are wary of becoming crosswise with their allies in organized labor, as unions tend to be strong supporters in elections. At the same time, Republicans see an opportunity to put pressure on Biden and his party if the railroads teeter toward a strike. But it’s entirely possible that all sides would be blamed for a rail shutdown.
The many businesses that rely on railroads to deliver their raw materials and finished products say a rail strike would cause significant problems particularly for oil refineries, chemical businesses, auto makers, retailers and agricultural groups. The Association of American Railroads trade group estimated that a strike would cost the economy more than $2 billion a day.
Businesses would likely try to turn to trucks and other modes of shipping if the railroads do shut down, but there isn’t enough trucking capacity to take up all the slack. The railroad trade group estimated that 467,000 additional trucks a day would be required to deliver everything railroads handle now.
A freight rail strike would also disrupt passenger traffic because Amtrak and many commuter railroads operate on tracks owned by the freight railroads. Amtrak has already canceled a number of its long-distance trains this week, and it said the rest of its long-distance trains would stop Thursday ahead of the strike deadline.
___
Associated Press writers Tom Krisher, Anne D’Innocenzio, Lisa Mascaro, Cathy Bussewitz, Chris Rugaber, Scott McFetridge and Matt Ott contributed to this report.
EXPLAINER: Rail strike would impact consumers, businesses
By DAVID KOENIG
By DAVID KOENIG
yesterda
A worker rides a rail car at a BNSF rail crossing in Saginaw, Texas, Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022. Business and government officials are preparing for a potential nationwide rail strike at the end of this week while talks carry on between the largest U.S. freight railroads and their unions.
A worker rides a rail car at a BNSF rail crossing in Saginaw, Texas, Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022. Business and government officials are preparing for a potential nationwide rail strike at the end of this week while talks carry on between the largest U.S. freight railroads and their unions.
(AP Photo/LM Otero)
Commuters, food producers, refineries and others could all be affected if there is a nationwide rail strike at the end of this week.
Members of one union rejected a tentative agreement that their leaders had negotiated with the biggest freight railroads, and three other unions were still at the bargaining table on Wednesday. Two other rail unions ratified deals.
The Biden administration was putting pressure on railroads and unions to settle their differences and avert a strike. In case that didn’t work, the administration was also working on a plan to use trucks and planes to move goods that are normally carried by freight railroads.
Business groups told Congress to step in and block a strike.
Here are key things to know ahead of a possible strike this Friday.
___
HOW DID NEGOTIATIONS GET TO THIS DIRE POINT?
The nation’s biggest freight railroads began negotiating with a dozen different unions representing about 115,000 workers in late 2019, but talks were slowed by the pandemic, which limited face-to-face meetings.
Government mediators tried to broker agreements, but that didn’t work. President Joe Biden then appointed a presidential emergency board, which held hearings and issued recommendations last month that included 24% pay raises and thousands of dollars in bonuses.
Many of the unions have reached tentative agreements with the railroads, but two large unions representing engineers and train conductors have held out for better terms on working conditions. Workers represented by the machinists’ union rejected a deal negotiated by their leaders, although that union agreed to delay any strike until Sept. 29. Two other unions — the Transportation Communications Union and the Brotherhood of Railway Carmen — voted to ratify their contracts Wednesday.
___
WHEN CAN WORKERS STRIKE?
By federal law, the unions can’t legally strike until after Friday morning, just after midnight. That’s when a 30-day “cooling-off” period ends, under terms of a law called the Railway Labor Act, which governs contract talks in the railroad and airline industries.
___
CAN A STRIKE BE BLOCKED?
Congress could intervene and block a strike or lockout, as it has done in previous nationwide rail-labor disputes, but it’s not clear whether that would happen this time.
Lawmakers are divided over a resolution to the dispute. Republicans want to impose the presidential emergency board’s terms, while Democrats prefer to let negotiators for the railroads and the two big unions keep talking.
___
WHAT ARE THE BIG ISSUES?
Rail workers stayed on the job throughout the pandemic but have not received a raise since 2019.
The unions sought raises of 31% over the five-year term of the new contracts, while the railroads offered 17% before the emergency board’s recommendations. The largest railroads endorsed the board’s middle-ground proposals, and most of the unions have reached tentative agreements based on those details.
However, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, and the transportation division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, which represents conductors, have held out in hopes of better terms including provisions on working conditions.
The major railroads have cut nearly one-third of their jobs in the last six years, and unions say that’s making the work of their members harder. They want railroads to ease strict attendance policies that make it difficult to take time off for things like doctor appointments.
___
HOW WOULD A RAIL STRIKE AFFECT THE COUNTRY?
Railroads such as Union Pacific, BNSF, CSX and Norfolk Southern carry cars, coal, chemicals, grain, imported goods and other products and raw materials throughout the country. A shutdown — even a brief one — would delay critical shipments and ripple across the economy.
The Association of American Railroads trade group estimates that a strike would cost the economy $2 billion a day. The Business Roundtable says a strike would be an “economic catastrophe.”
___
WILL IT IMPACT FUEL SUPPLIES?
About 300,000 barrels of crude oil is shipped by rail every day, and refineries might have to slow production if deliveries are delayed, according to the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers. Analysts warn there could be shortages of gasoline and diesel in some places such as the Northeast.
___
WHAT ABOUT NEW CARS?
Most new vehicles are shipped from the factory or dock by rail, and analysts say there is not enough truck capacity to handle all those vehicles in case of a strike. That would mean even longer wait times for dealers and motorists to get their hands on new cars.
A strike could also interfere with production because automakers receive some parts and raw materials by rail.
___
WILL SOME STORE SHELVES BE BARE?
The railroads have announced plans to stop shipping refrigerated items ahead of the strike deadline, so there could be disruptions in deliveries of produce, meat and other items.
Food producers could be affected too, leading to longer-lasting effects. Agricultural groups say that even a brief strike would interrupt shipment of feed to livestock and poultry producers.
___
WILL A STRIKE AFFECT PASSENGER RAIL?
Yes. Amtrak announced that all long-distance trains have been canceled starting with Thursday’s schedule. The passenger rail service had already suspended the California Zephyr and Empire Builder lines that run from Chicago to the West Coast and announced plans to shut down several others.
Amtrak uses its own track in much of the corridor from Washington to Boston, but almost everywhere else it relies on freight track that could be closed during a strike even though Amtrak and its workers are not involved in the negotiations.
Around the country, some local commuter rail lines also depend on tracks owned by the big freight railroads. The Chicago area’s Metra commuter line said that if there is a strike it will suspend operations on four of its 11 lines on Friday.
___
COULD THERE BE POLITICAL FALLOUT?
The White House is clearly worried that any disruption in supply chains just weeks before the November midterm elections could anger consumers, who are already facing the highest inflation in 40 years. That could hurt Democrats, who are trying to protect razor-thin control of the Senate and House.
Republicans will blame Democrats if there is a strike and Congress fails to stop it.
“This has been negotiated for three years. It’s time that it ends,” said Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, the top Republican on the Commerce Committee.
Democrats, however, are hesitant to stand in the way of unions trying to get a better deal for their members, and they say Congress should not try to tip the scales in negotiations.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the administration has told the railroads and unions that American families, business and farms would suffer. She said a strike is “not acceptable.”
___
Josh Funk in Omaha, Nebraska, Lisa Mascaro and Kevin Freking in Washington, Tom Krisher in Detroit and Cathy Bussewitz in New York contributed to this report.
Commuters, food producers, refineries and others could all be affected if there is a nationwide rail strike at the end of this week.
Members of one union rejected a tentative agreement that their leaders had negotiated with the biggest freight railroads, and three other unions were still at the bargaining table on Wednesday. Two other rail unions ratified deals.
The Biden administration was putting pressure on railroads and unions to settle their differences and avert a strike. In case that didn’t work, the administration was also working on a plan to use trucks and planes to move goods that are normally carried by freight railroads.
Business groups told Congress to step in and block a strike.
Here are key things to know ahead of a possible strike this Friday.
___
HOW DID NEGOTIATIONS GET TO THIS DIRE POINT?
The nation’s biggest freight railroads began negotiating with a dozen different unions representing about 115,000 workers in late 2019, but talks were slowed by the pandemic, which limited face-to-face meetings.
Government mediators tried to broker agreements, but that didn’t work. President Joe Biden then appointed a presidential emergency board, which held hearings and issued recommendations last month that included 24% pay raises and thousands of dollars in bonuses.
Many of the unions have reached tentative agreements with the railroads, but two large unions representing engineers and train conductors have held out for better terms on working conditions. Workers represented by the machinists’ union rejected a deal negotiated by their leaders, although that union agreed to delay any strike until Sept. 29. Two other unions — the Transportation Communications Union and the Brotherhood of Railway Carmen — voted to ratify their contracts Wednesday.
___
WHEN CAN WORKERS STRIKE?
By federal law, the unions can’t legally strike until after Friday morning, just after midnight. That’s when a 30-day “cooling-off” period ends, under terms of a law called the Railway Labor Act, which governs contract talks in the railroad and airline industries.
___
CAN A STRIKE BE BLOCKED?
Congress could intervene and block a strike or lockout, as it has done in previous nationwide rail-labor disputes, but it’s not clear whether that would happen this time.
Lawmakers are divided over a resolution to the dispute. Republicans want to impose the presidential emergency board’s terms, while Democrats prefer to let negotiators for the railroads and the two big unions keep talking.
___
WHAT ARE THE BIG ISSUES?
Rail workers stayed on the job throughout the pandemic but have not received a raise since 2019.
The unions sought raises of 31% over the five-year term of the new contracts, while the railroads offered 17% before the emergency board’s recommendations. The largest railroads endorsed the board’s middle-ground proposals, and most of the unions have reached tentative agreements based on those details.
However, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, and the transportation division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, which represents conductors, have held out in hopes of better terms including provisions on working conditions.
The major railroads have cut nearly one-third of their jobs in the last six years, and unions say that’s making the work of their members harder. They want railroads to ease strict attendance policies that make it difficult to take time off for things like doctor appointments.
___
HOW WOULD A RAIL STRIKE AFFECT THE COUNTRY?
Railroads such as Union Pacific, BNSF, CSX and Norfolk Southern carry cars, coal, chemicals, grain, imported goods and other products and raw materials throughout the country. A shutdown — even a brief one — would delay critical shipments and ripple across the economy.
The Association of American Railroads trade group estimates that a strike would cost the economy $2 billion a day. The Business Roundtable says a strike would be an “economic catastrophe.”
___
WILL IT IMPACT FUEL SUPPLIES?
About 300,000 barrels of crude oil is shipped by rail every day, and refineries might have to slow production if deliveries are delayed, according to the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers. Analysts warn there could be shortages of gasoline and diesel in some places such as the Northeast.
___
WHAT ABOUT NEW CARS?
Most new vehicles are shipped from the factory or dock by rail, and analysts say there is not enough truck capacity to handle all those vehicles in case of a strike. That would mean even longer wait times for dealers and motorists to get their hands on new cars.
A strike could also interfere with production because automakers receive some parts and raw materials by rail.
___
WILL SOME STORE SHELVES BE BARE?
The railroads have announced plans to stop shipping refrigerated items ahead of the strike deadline, so there could be disruptions in deliveries of produce, meat and other items.
Food producers could be affected too, leading to longer-lasting effects. Agricultural groups say that even a brief strike would interrupt shipment of feed to livestock and poultry producers.
___
WILL A STRIKE AFFECT PASSENGER RAIL?
Yes. Amtrak announced that all long-distance trains have been canceled starting with Thursday’s schedule. The passenger rail service had already suspended the California Zephyr and Empire Builder lines that run from Chicago to the West Coast and announced plans to shut down several others.
Amtrak uses its own track in much of the corridor from Washington to Boston, but almost everywhere else it relies on freight track that could be closed during a strike even though Amtrak and its workers are not involved in the negotiations.
Around the country, some local commuter rail lines also depend on tracks owned by the big freight railroads. The Chicago area’s Metra commuter line said that if there is a strike it will suspend operations on four of its 11 lines on Friday.
___
COULD THERE BE POLITICAL FALLOUT?
The White House is clearly worried that any disruption in supply chains just weeks before the November midterm elections could anger consumers, who are already facing the highest inflation in 40 years. That could hurt Democrats, who are trying to protect razor-thin control of the Senate and House.
Republicans will blame Democrats if there is a strike and Congress fails to stop it.
“This has been negotiated for three years. It’s time that it ends,” said Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, the top Republican on the Commerce Committee.
Democrats, however, are hesitant to stand in the way of unions trying to get a better deal for their members, and they say Congress should not try to tip the scales in negotiations.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the administration has told the railroads and unions that American families, business and farms would suffer. She said a strike is “not acceptable.”
___
Josh Funk in Omaha, Nebraska, Lisa Mascaro and Kevin Freking in Washington, Tom Krisher in Detroit and Cathy Bussewitz in New York contributed to this report.
From carmakers to refiners, industries brace for rail strike
By The Associated Press
By The Associated Press
yesterday
An Amtrak passenger train and a freight train head northbound towards downtown Chicago Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022, in Chicago. Business and government officials are preparing for a potential nationwide rail strike at the end of this week while talks carry on between the largest U.S. freight railroads and their unions.
An Amtrak passenger train and a freight train head northbound towards downtown Chicago Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022, in Chicago. Business and government officials are preparing for a potential nationwide rail strike at the end of this week while talks carry on between the largest U.S. freight railroads and their unions.
(AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
Car buyers might not get the vehicle they want on time, commuter rail lines could see service disrupted, and shipments from everything from oil to livestock feed could be snarled.
Those are just a few of the wide-ranging impacts a walkout by U.S. rail workers would have on the country’s industries and economy. A strike could happen if the railroads and unions can’t settle their differences before an early Friday walkout deadline.
Here’s how some industries are gauging the potential impacts and getting ready for the possible work stoppage.
___
AUTO INDUSTRY
Nearly all new vehicles that travel more than a couple hundred miles from the factory to their destination are shipped by rail because it’s more efficient, said Michael Robinet, an executive director for S&P Global Mobility. So it’s almost a certainty that new vehicles coming to the U.S. from Mexico or other countries will be delayed, he said.
“It’s not like there’s extra truck capacity to take all the vehicles that the railroads can’t carry,” Robinet said.
Automakers might be hampered in building vehicles, too, because some larger parts and raw materials are transported by rail. But Robinet said automakers will go to great lengths to get the parts to keep their factories running as much as possible.
Mike Austin, senior mobility analyst for Guidehouse Research, said the strike could make new vehicles even more scarce, driving prices up beyond current record levels. That could raise inflation “as other goods aren’t moving through the rails.”
Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis, said Wednesday at the Detroit auto show that his company will wind up apologizing to customers because their orders may not arrive on time.
___
COMMUTING
Metra commuter rail service, which operates in the Chicago area, said Wednesday that it would suspend operations on four of its 11 lines on Friday if a work stoppage occurs. Some disruption on those lines would begin after rush hour Thursday night. In Minnesota, the operators of a commuter rail line that carries workers along a densely populated corridor from Minneapolis to northwestern suburbs and towns warned that service could be suspended as early as Friday.
In the Puget Sound region of Washington state, any strike would cancel the rail service until employees return to work, said David Jackson, a spokesman for the regional transit agency Sound Transit. Some Caltrain riders in the San Francisco Bay Area could be impacted by a rail strike, officials said.
The Maryland Transit Administration warned this week that a strike would mean the immediate suspension of service on two of its three MARC commuter rail lines.
Amtrak, meanwhile, said that starting Thursday, all its long-distance trains are canceled to avoid possible passenger disruptions while en route.
___
ENERGY
A strike could have a significant impact on the energy industry, and could hurt consumers who would likely end up paying more for gasoline, electricity and natural gas. Refineries might have to halt production if they can’t get the deliveries they need, or if they don’t have access to rail to ship gasoline.
No one wants to risk leaving flammable chemicals stranded on the railroad tracks if a strike occurs. That’s why railroads began curtailing shipments of hazardous materials on Monday to protect that dangerous cargo.
Roughly 300,000 barrels of crude oil move by rail each day, which could supply about two mid-size refineries, according to AFPM. And about 5 million barrels of propane, representing a third of U.S. consumption, are moved by rail monthly, the group said.
Roughly 70% of ethanol produced in the U.S. is shipped by rail, and ethanol accounts for about a tenth of U.S. gasoline volume, according to S&P Global Commodity Insights. Nearly 75% of the coal moved to electric utilities in the first half of 2022 was moved by rail, the group said.
___
AGRICULTURE
Livestock producers could see problems almost immediately if shipments of feed abruptly ended, according to the National Grain and Feed Association.
Meat and poultry groups noted the reliance on rail for shipments of feed and called for a quick resolution of the rail dispute. Every week, the nation’s chicken industry receives about 27 million bushels of corn and 11 million bushels of soybean meal to feed chickens, said Tom Super, senior vice president of the National Chicken Council.
___
RETAIL
Experts say retailers have been shipping goods earlier in the season in recent months as a way to protect themselves from potential disruptions. But this buffer will only slightly minimize the impact from a railroad strike, which is brewing during the critical holiday shipping season, said Jesse Dankert, vice president of supply chain at the Retail Industry Leaders Association, a retail trade group that counts more than 200 retailers like Best Buy as its members. She noted that retailers are already feeling the impact from the uncertainty as some freight carriers are limiting services.
Dankert noted that retailers, noticing a slowdown in shipments, are now making contingency plans like turning to trucks to pick up some of the slack and making plans to use some of the excess inventory that it has in its distribution centers.
But she noted that there are not enough trucks and drivers to meet their needs. That scarcity will only drive up costs and make inflation worse, she said.
“As we have seen in the past two and half years, if there is a breakdown anywhere along the supply chain, one link falters, you see that ripple effect pretty quickly and those effects just spread from there,” Dankert said.
Car buyers might not get the vehicle they want on time, commuter rail lines could see service disrupted, and shipments from everything from oil to livestock feed could be snarled.
Those are just a few of the wide-ranging impacts a walkout by U.S. rail workers would have on the country’s industries and economy. A strike could happen if the railroads and unions can’t settle their differences before an early Friday walkout deadline.
Here’s how some industries are gauging the potential impacts and getting ready for the possible work stoppage.
___
AUTO INDUSTRY
Nearly all new vehicles that travel more than a couple hundred miles from the factory to their destination are shipped by rail because it’s more efficient, said Michael Robinet, an executive director for S&P Global Mobility. So it’s almost a certainty that new vehicles coming to the U.S. from Mexico or other countries will be delayed, he said.
“It’s not like there’s extra truck capacity to take all the vehicles that the railroads can’t carry,” Robinet said.
Automakers might be hampered in building vehicles, too, because some larger parts and raw materials are transported by rail. But Robinet said automakers will go to great lengths to get the parts to keep their factories running as much as possible.
Mike Austin, senior mobility analyst for Guidehouse Research, said the strike could make new vehicles even more scarce, driving prices up beyond current record levels. That could raise inflation “as other goods aren’t moving through the rails.”
Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis, said Wednesday at the Detroit auto show that his company will wind up apologizing to customers because their orders may not arrive on time.
___
COMMUTING
Metra commuter rail service, which operates in the Chicago area, said Wednesday that it would suspend operations on four of its 11 lines on Friday if a work stoppage occurs. Some disruption on those lines would begin after rush hour Thursday night. In Minnesota, the operators of a commuter rail line that carries workers along a densely populated corridor from Minneapolis to northwestern suburbs and towns warned that service could be suspended as early as Friday.
In the Puget Sound region of Washington state, any strike would cancel the rail service until employees return to work, said David Jackson, a spokesman for the regional transit agency Sound Transit. Some Caltrain riders in the San Francisco Bay Area could be impacted by a rail strike, officials said.
The Maryland Transit Administration warned this week that a strike would mean the immediate suspension of service on two of its three MARC commuter rail lines.
Amtrak, meanwhile, said that starting Thursday, all its long-distance trains are canceled to avoid possible passenger disruptions while en route.
___
ENERGY
A strike could have a significant impact on the energy industry, and could hurt consumers who would likely end up paying more for gasoline, electricity and natural gas. Refineries might have to halt production if they can’t get the deliveries they need, or if they don’t have access to rail to ship gasoline.
No one wants to risk leaving flammable chemicals stranded on the railroad tracks if a strike occurs. That’s why railroads began curtailing shipments of hazardous materials on Monday to protect that dangerous cargo.
Roughly 300,000 barrels of crude oil move by rail each day, which could supply about two mid-size refineries, according to AFPM. And about 5 million barrels of propane, representing a third of U.S. consumption, are moved by rail monthly, the group said.
Roughly 70% of ethanol produced in the U.S. is shipped by rail, and ethanol accounts for about a tenth of U.S. gasoline volume, according to S&P Global Commodity Insights. Nearly 75% of the coal moved to electric utilities in the first half of 2022 was moved by rail, the group said.
___
AGRICULTURE
Livestock producers could see problems almost immediately if shipments of feed abruptly ended, according to the National Grain and Feed Association.
Meat and poultry groups noted the reliance on rail for shipments of feed and called for a quick resolution of the rail dispute. Every week, the nation’s chicken industry receives about 27 million bushels of corn and 11 million bushels of soybean meal to feed chickens, said Tom Super, senior vice president of the National Chicken Council.
___
RETAIL
Experts say retailers have been shipping goods earlier in the season in recent months as a way to protect themselves from potential disruptions. But this buffer will only slightly minimize the impact from a railroad strike, which is brewing during the critical holiday shipping season, said Jesse Dankert, vice president of supply chain at the Retail Industry Leaders Association, a retail trade group that counts more than 200 retailers like Best Buy as its members. She noted that retailers are already feeling the impact from the uncertainty as some freight carriers are limiting services.
Dankert noted that retailers, noticing a slowdown in shipments, are now making contingency plans like turning to trucks to pick up some of the slack and making plans to use some of the excess inventory that it has in its distribution centers.
But she noted that there are not enough trucks and drivers to meet their needs. That scarcity will only drive up costs and make inflation worse, she said.
“As we have seen in the past two and half years, if there is a breakdown anywhere along the supply chain, one link falters, you see that ripple effect pretty quickly and those effects just spread from there,” Dankert said.
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