President Joe Biden signed a law that compels railways and their unions to accept a deal to avert a strike just before the busy holiday shopping season. The U.S. Senate approved the measure Thursday. "A rail shutdown would have devastated our economy," Biden said Friday.
We have pulled together a collection of articles on the news from SHRM Online and other trusted news sources.
Senate Vote
The Senate voted on Thursday to head off a freight rail strike at the 11th hour but failed to add the seven paid sick days that workers wanted. The Senate vote happened just days before crucial drinking water, food and energy shipments were set to be sidelined. Two additional Senate votes—one to add seven paid sick days and one to extend the period during which the unions can't strike by another 60 days—both failed.
(Politico)
Biden Approves
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the legislation on Wednesday to avoid a debilitating nationwide rail strike.
(SHRM Online and NPR)
Pay Increase
This marked the first time Congress has intervened in rail negotiations since 1992. Under the agreement, railway workers will get a roughly 24 percent pay increase by 2024 while gaining more flexibility to take time off for doctor's appointments. The measure also grants them one paid personal day, though it does not include any new dedicated time off for illnesses.
Eight of the country's 12 rail unions approved the deal, hoping to avert a strike. But four other railway unions rejected the proposal earlier this month.
No Sick Days
Railway workers have complained that current policies keep them on call for days or weeks at a time and penalize those who call out sick. Railroad companies have contended that the pay raises offered in the deal are among the highest in decades. Six Senate Republicans voted to include paid sick leave, but one Democrat, Sen. Joe Manchin, W.Va., voted against it.
(Forbes)
Railway Labor Act
The Railway Labor Act was passed in 1926 as one of the very first labor laws in the nation. It regulates labor negotiations between unions and management. Because of the law, the House was able to vote Wednesday to impose unpopular contracts on four rail unions whose members have already rejected the terms, followed by a vote by the Senate late Thursday that did the same.
The law is meant to prevent strikes that could be harmful to the nation's economy. A strike now would have shut down about 30 percent of the nation's freight shipments. A prolonged strike would have caused shortages for a wide range of items, from food to gasoline to automobiles, and likely resulted in a spike in prices.
(CNN)
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