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☆ If rail strike begins, 'I think every union' will honor picket line, says BLET president
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

One of the largest rail labor unions, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET), will honor the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS) strike date of December 5, the first date upon which a rail union to reject the proposed labor deal with freight railroad companies can strike. "Our members will certainly honor the picket line of BRS," BLET president Dennis Pierce told CNBC. The BRS has not announced if it would extend a cooling-off period to match a later potential strike date of Dec. 9. On Monday, SMART-TD, one of the largest rail unions, voted down the labor deal, but its first strike date is December 9. Access to time off is one of the components of the BLET agreement, and rail unions have been pushing to make federal contractor sick pay policies a permanent benefit for union members.

☆ Biggest Railroad Unions Count Votes as Threat of Strike Looms
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Esther Fung | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A strike by railroad workers could lead to diversions and cascade into delays and congestion, pushing back recovery in some supply chains. Two of the country’s largest railroad unions will reveal Monday whether their members voted to accept a new wage deal brokered by the White House, or reject it and move closer to a strike that could disrupt the flow of goods around the country. The unions representing engineers and conductors—SMART Transportation Division and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen—are the final two of the 12 unions reporting the ratification of votes in what has been a contentious and protracted labor dispute.

☆ Rail strike potential grows, threatening to worsen supply chain backlogs, inflation
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Eli M. Rosenberg | Eli Rosenberg Is An Investigative Tech Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +12 min

That’s how much paid sick leave some freight rail workers are demanding from the rail companies before they sign new contracts. Rail workers say years of grievances about workforce cuts, coupled with new scheduling requirements, have pushed them to the brink of exhaustion. But if any of the unions decides to strike, all rail unions will honor the work stoppage. Kennedy said the union had never agreed to higher wages at the expense of a benefit like paid sick leave. “A rail strike, even one of short duration, would be catastrophic,” said John Drake, a vice president at the Chamber of Commerce.

☆ With U.S. economy at risk, here's how a national rail strike could start in December
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The strike prep calendar for rail operators, customers, and logistics managers continues to be in flux with a lack of coordination between key rail unions leaving open the potential for two strike dates in December. BMWED, which represents the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees, is scheduled to strike on December 5 with the The Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS). But unlike BMWED, the BRS — which can also strike after its cooling-off period ends on Dec. 4 — has not indicated whether it will extend its deadline for talks. According to federal safety measures, railroad carriers begin prepping for a strike seven days before the strike date. The carriers start to prioritize the securing and movement of security sensitive materials like chlorine for drinking water and hazardous materials in the rail winddown.

☆ Chemicals industry warns that rail strike will shut plants and cost economy billions
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Ninety-six hours before a strike deadline, all chemical shipments are no longer moved. "We would expect a similar dramatic reduction in chemical shipments if an embargo were to take place this month." The start of rail strike preparation will depend on the voting results from some of the largest rail unions yet to ratify the labor deal recommended by President Biden's Presidential Emergency Board. If SMART-TD or BLET rejects the agreement, the strike date would be December 9, the day after their cooling-off period ends. BMWED has said it would extend its own cooling-off period to align with the new strike date.

New York CNN Business —The threat of a freight railroad strike has been pushed back to early December, as four major unions have agreed to coordinate the date on which they could potentially go on strike. The third-largest railroad union, the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employe Division, had been prepared to strike as soon as November 20, the Sunday before Thanksgiving. If those contracts are voted down, the BMWED and Signalmen have agreed to further push back their strike deadline to that date. The unions want to maintain their ability to strike in order to increase their leverage with the railroads. The unions are concerned that the November 20 strike threat would prompt the railroads to curtail services as soon as next week.

☆ Key freight rail union BMWED extends deadline for strike that threatens U.S. economy
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division, the third largest rail union in the country, is extending its status quo period (no strike, no lockout) during which it wants to continue negotiations with the freight rail carriers. Meanwhile, two major rail unions are set to vote on ratifying the deal on Nov. 21: The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, and the Smart Transportation Division. The rail industry has previously estimated the cost to the economy of a rail strike at $2 billion per day. The BMWED was the first rail union to vote against ratification of a labor agreement negotiated in conjunction with Biden's PEB. All 12 labor unions must ratify a labor agreement to avoid the potential for a nationwide rail shutdown.

Things will remain status quo with the union’s contract until then. The engineers and conductors union votes are cause for “apprehension on all sides,” said the source. Online chatter among the conductors union and engineers union members signal they want a strike before even seeing the contract, while some are calling for reason, the source said. Conductors union and engineers union members will be mailed ballots at the end of this month with a 21-day voting period. Although most union contracts are ratified, there have been some very high-profile examples of angry union members voting no.

☆ The powerful motivator behind workers who want more
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-16 | by ( Christine Romans | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN Business —Rail workers, teachers, nurses, baristas. There is a powerful factor motivating these American workers to demand for more. “Railroad workers are leading the way but everyone wants more.”Those are the dollars and cents behind workers’ dissatisfaction. For workers, closing that gap between wages and consumer prices could, actually, be inflationary. The things that make us middle class — housing, health care, education — these things are going up at triple that rate.

The White House struck a tentative deal Thursday to avoid a rail strike that risked major disruptions across the United States, with freight workers securing a key demand. Pandemic pressures, including those that scrambled supply chains, worked in freight workers’ favor, logistics experts said. A rail strike would dent many industries, as about 40% of goods that are shipped long-distance rely on the nation’s rail system. Rail workers often are on-call 24/7 year-round and are allotted time off only after being called to a number of consecutive on-call shifts. A labor union source told NBC News that getting rail carriers to negotiate on attendance policies was a major breakthrough.

Groups representing big rail shippers said Thursday’s tentative railroad-labor contract avoids potential turmoil in their supply chains and they are hoping for rapid ratification by union members to fully ease the labor tensions. “We are relieved and cautiously optimistic that this devastating nationwide rail strike has been averted,” said National Retail Federation President and Chief Executive Matthew Shay. The tentative deal must now be ratified by members of the various unions covered by the contracts. The deal, which is retroactive to 2019, includes a 14.1% wage increase upon ratification. Still, the agreement may help improve rail service in operations that have been hit by capacity and staffing shortages, he wrote.

Railroads and workers' unions reached a tentative labor agreement early Thursday to avert a national rail strike that threatened to shut a major segment of the U.S. transportation network. "The tentative agreement reached tonight is an important win for our economy and the American people," President Joe Biden said in a statement announcing the deal. The White House had been in talks with railroad workers' unions and companies for several months, but negotiations were hung up over unpaid sick time. He thanked railroad unions and companies for negotiating "in good faith." Negotiators from railroad carriers and unions had met in Labor Secretary Marty Walsh's office Wednesday as the sides tried to negotiate a deal ahead of Friday's strike deadline.

☆ UK train drivers at 8 rail companies to strike on July 30, union says
▼ + stars: | 2022-07-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, July 14 (Reuters) - Train drivers at eight British rail companies will strike on July 30 over a pay dispute, the drivers’ union ASLEF said on Thursday in the latest industrial action sparked by demands for wages to keep pace with soaring inflation. The Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (ASLEF) said it had announced the day of strike action after train companies failed to make a pay offer that matched the increased cost of living. "Strike action is, now, the only option available but we are always open to talks if the train companies, or the government, want to talk to us and make a fair and sensible offer," General Secretary Mick Whelan said in an emailed statement. ASLEF said its members at eight companies – Arriva Rail London, Chiltern Railways, Greater Anglia, Great Western, Hull Trains, LNER, Southeastern and West Midlands Trains – would strike. “It’s incredibly disappointing that, just three days after their ballots closed, ASLEF bosses have already opted for destructive strike action, instead of engaging in constructive talks," Britain's transport minister Grant Shapps said.

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