The nation's supply of food could take a hit if railroad workers go on strike, driving up prices at the grocery store and limiting U.S. grain exports to countries facing famine.
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Food fearsIt would take about a week for customers to notice shortages of foodstuffs such as cereal, peanut butter and even beer at the grocery store, said Tom Madrecki, vice-president of supply chain for the Consumer Brands Association. About 30% of all packaged foods in the US are moved by rail, he said.
Another recent report put together by a chemical industry trade group projected that if a strike drags on for a month some 700,000 jobs would be lost as manufacturers who rely on railroads shut down, prices of nearly everything increase even more and the economy is potentially thrust into a recession.
Supply SqueezesIf railroad workers went on strike, drayage freight truckers would lack the necessary equipment to handle the supply capacity of a freight train. With less space to transport goods via trucks, it would take longer to move the same amount of product.
The rail unions are headed toward a strike over pay and ongoing grievances from members that the working conditions are grueling, and not conducive to a life off the job.
A rail strike could have frozen almost 30% of U.S. cargo shipments by weight, stoked already surging inflation, cost the American economy as much as $2 billion a day, and stranded millions of rail passengers.
August 2023. The ASLEF union took action short of a strike which affected some train operators from Monday 31 July to Saturday 5 August and Monday 7 to Saturday 12 August which involved ASLEF members withdrawing from working overtime during this time.
A railroad strike would likely force other transportation sectors such as trucks and barges to pick up the slack, but that could overburden them. Trucks already transport close to 70 percent of all grain, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.