National Railway Strike Looms Ahead Of Holidays: What To Know In WA

SEATTLE — One of the largest railroad unions on Monday rejected a deal brokered by President Joe Biden in September, putting the country again closer to a national freight strike that could disrupt commuter rail service and shipping ahead of the holidays.

The union representing about 28,000 railway conductors — SMART Transportation Division — said its members voted down the deal that includes 24 percent raises by a thin, 50.9 percent margin.

The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, which represents 29,000 people, also said Monday that 53.5 percent of its members had voted to ratify the deal offered by the coalition of the nation's biggest freight railroads, including Union Pacific, CSX, Norfolk Southern, BNSF and Kansas City Southern.

In rejecting the contract, the conductors’ union said it failed to address demanding schedules and quality of life issues of employees. Seven smaller unions have approved the contract, which on top of the 24 percent pay bump, includes a $5,000 bonus.

The agreement brokered by the White House in September was tentative, requiring full ratification by railway workers. The split vote Monday by the two most politically powerful of the 12 unions involved in negotiations makes it more likely Congress, backed by hundreds of business groups, will have to step in to resolve the dispute before the new Dec. 5 strike deadline.

A strike would halt shipments of food and fuel at a cost of $2 billion a day, according to a report earlier this year by the Association of American Railroads, an industry trade group. Supply chain issues are easing, but likely would become tangled again by a strike, according to the report.

The early December strike deadline means Amtrak won’t see Thanksgiving disruptions. So far, Amtrak hasn’t announced any schedule change, as it did in September when a strike appeared likely. In Washington, Amtrak and Sound Transit prepared to cancel service on major commuter routes, which largely run on tracks owned by BNSF.

Past Dec. 5, there are no guarantees. The unions that haven’t ratified the contract remain at the bargaining table, where talks are deadlocked over the railroad’s refusal to consider adding paid sick time beyond the amount already offered.

Workers frustrated with the demanding schedules and deep job cuts in the industry pushed to reject these contracts because they don't resolve workers’ key quality-of-life concerns. The deals for the engineers and conductors did include a promise to try to improve the scheduling of regular days off and negotiate the details of those schedules further at each railroad.

The unions that represent engineers and conductors also received three unpaid days off a year to tend to medical needs as long as they were scheduled at least 30 days in advance.

The railroads also lost out on their bid to cut crew sizes down to one person as part of the negotiations. But the conductors in the Transportation Division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers union still narrowly rejected the deal.

The railroads maintain that the deals with the unions should closely follow the recommendations made this summer by a special panel of arbitrators President Joe Biden appointed. That's part of the reason why they don't want to offer paid sick time. Plus, the railroads say the unions have agreed over the years to forgo paid sick time in favor of higher pay and strong short-term disability benefits.

The unions say it is long overdue for the railroads to offer paid sick time to workers, and the pandemic highlighted the need for it.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.