Railroad workers are set to vote on the tentative agreement reached between unions and the railroads Thursday morning. If any of the 12 rail unions fail to ratify a new contract, nearly 125,000 rail workers could go on strike.
The deal would mandate two-person crews, limit health care costs and allow workers to take time off for medical appointments or other scheduled events without penalty, all key concessions won by unions.
The deal also provides for 24 percent raises over five years, back pay and cash bonuses, similar terms to those offered by the presidential emergency board (PEB) appointed by the White House last month.
But nearly 36 hours after the deal was announced, the railroad workers said they still don’t have specific details about the sick leave and have been given a voluntary day off. This has raised some doubts about how strong the language of the new contract is.
Ron Kaminkow, an organizer with Railroad Workers United, which represents the railroads, said there is “a lot of anger, confusion and hostility” toward the new agreement, which many workers believe is intentionally vague.
“Workers are pissed off and this time we really have a lot of leverage,” said a locomotive engineer at Norfolk Southern who asked not to be named for fear of retaliation. “I know I’m not going to accept anything less than what we deserve.”
The two largest rail unions warned during negotiations that their members would not approve a contract that did not quell anger over unpredictable scheduling, unsafe working conditions and a lack of sick leave.
To end the threat of a strike, workers would have to feel that the proposed contract is much stronger than the deal offered by the PEB. A survey of railroad workers in the SMART Transportation Division found that nearly 8 in 10 would have voted to reject this contract.
Another dilemma is that the tentative deal reached Thursday applies only to SMART and the Brotherhood Of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, the two largest railroad unions, but not the other unions that agreed to contracts based on the less worker-friendly guidance. PEB.
They include nearly 5,000 railroad workers in the International Union of Mechanical and Aerospace Workers who voted to reject the PEB contract and strike authorization last week. The union said it would continue negotiations this week and suspend the strike until at least September 29.
Counting of votes is certain to last until October, potentially setting a key deadline at the height of the election season.
Robert Bruno, a professor of labor and industrial relations at the University of Illinois, predicted the deal would eventually pass, but with “a fair number of ‘no’ votes.”
“I would be surprised if the negotiating committee misinterpreted what the rank and file would support. That doesn’t mean it will pass with supermajorities,” Bruno said. “This will signal a level of continued grievance on the part of members. I wouldn’t be surprised if a fairly significant number of members voted ‘no’ in part because of the real abuse they feel.”
Bruno also said that the fact that sick leave and voluntarily assigned days off are the sticking points, not wages, may inspire more “no”s from workers.
“Usually, there’s a way to find money,” he said. “Very often they are issues of respect and treatment, work autonomy, the ability of workers to have some control over their lives. … I think it reflects exactly how much power employers can have, even within a collective agreement.”
A strike would shut down the US rail system, which carries nearly a third of the nation’s freight, shutting down large parts of the economy. Huge amounts of food, fuel and other essential commodities would have no way to reach their destination.
The possibility of further disruption to the nation’s fragile supply chain came at a dire time for Democrats looking to retain their majority in Congress in the upcoming midterm elections.
There is a sense of dread among some railroad workers that Congress, not workers, will ultimately decide the next railroad contract if they vote against the newest deal.
Senate Democrats on Wednesday blocked a GOP resolution that would have forced unions to accept the PEB’s terms, arguing that more time should be given to negotiators.
But Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) said Thursday that Democrats were ready with a resolution to block rail shutdowns if negotiations collapse. He did not say whether the bill would impose a new contract, appoint arbitrators or simply prevent a walkout.
“Fortunately this action may not be necessary,” Pelosi said in a statement.
Biden says he’s running. Democrats still have doubts about Biden signing bill to end statute of limitations on child sex abuse victims
If the negotiations break down, it could bode poorly for Biden, who often touts himself as the most pro-union president in US history. Biden’s call to negotiations at 9 p.m. Thursday to say the rail shutdown was unacceptable came just hours before the tentative deal was struck. He has received credit from both sides of the talks.
“This is an important test of the Biden administration’s commitments — not just to labor unions, but to protecting jobs and middle-class workers,” said Gordon Laffer, co-director of the Center for Labor Education & Research at the University of Oregon.
“If the company’s position is basically that they want to keep workers on lean schedules that affect their health, family life and emotional well-being, just so they don’t cut into already healthy profits, I think that’s exactly the kind of problem which Biden promised to solve,” he added.
