Rail union rejects contract as strike threatens U.S. economy before holidays - The Washington Post

A nationalist obstruction strike, which could hap arsenic aboriginal arsenic Dec. 5, could endanger the nation’s ember shipments, its proviso of drinking water, and unopen down rider rail. The U.S. system could suffer $2 cardinal a time if railroad workers strike, according to the Association of American Railroads.

Already 7 of 12 unions person voted to o.k. their contracts. But successful caller weeks, 3 of the smaller unions, including the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees and the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, person besides rejected their contracts and are backmost successful negotiations.

The main sticking points for rank-and-file members person been implicit attendance and sick permission policies that penalize workers for taking clip off.

“Honestly, this ballot is astir the vexation that the railroads person created with [their attendance policies] and the deterioration of prime of beingness arsenic a effect for our conductors,” Jared Cassity, the nationalist legislative manager astatine SMART Transportation and a conductor. “It’s astir attendance policies, sick time, fatigue, and the deficiency of household time. A batch of these things that cannot beryllium seen but are felt by our membership. It’s destroying their livelihoods.”

The Association of American Railroads did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

Cassity said the national would apt instantly resume negotiations with obstruction carriers arsenic their onslaught deadline looms connected Dec. 8

But unless Congress intervenes oregon a caller woody is reached, workers astatine the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees and the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen would beryllium allowed to onslaught and companies would beryllium capable to enforce a lockout adjacent sooner, close aft midnight Dec. 5.

If those unions onslaught connected Dec. 5, each of the unions would apt determination successful solidarity, provoking an industry-wide enactment stoppage.

After reaching an impasse successful negotiations earlier this year, the White House appointed an exigency committee successful July to mediate the quality betwixt six large obstruction carriers and 12 unions that correspond 115,000 railroad workers. But unions voted down that agreement.

Attendance policies person been astatine the bosom of the melodramatic showdown betwixt the nation’s largest obstruction carriers and railroad workers, who did not onslaught aft President Biden and different apical medication officials brokered a last-minute statement successful precocious September.

That woody included a 24 percent wage summation by 2024 — the largest for railroad workers successful much than 4 decades — and caller flexibility for workers to instrumentality clip disconnected erstwhile they are hospitalized oregon to be regular doctor’s appointments without penalty.

But discontent among obstruction workers continued to brew. They accidental overmuch of the points-based attendance argumentation was near successful place. They besides accidental the woody didn’t code cardinal concerns astir prime of beingness amid achy labour shortages and the continued dispersed of covid-19.

Under the Railway Labor Act of 1926, Congress tin intervene successful the lawsuit of a railway onslaught to enforce a declaration connected the railroads to artifact oregon halt a obstruction strike.

If that happens, determination would beryllium a abbreviated play aft Thanksgiving for lawmakers to measurement successful to enforce a contract. Some Republican lawmakers person said they are acceptable to enforce a declaration negotiated aboriginal this twelvemonth by the White House which does not code paid sick permission and points-based attendance policies that forestall workers from going to regular doctors’ appointments with facing penalties.