What is the railroad strike controversy?

The 2022 United States railroad labor dispute was a labor dispute between freight railroads and workers in the United States. Rail companies and unions had tentatively agreed to a deal in September 2022, but it was rejected by a majority of the unions' rank-and-file members.



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What is the rail strike about? Rail union leaders and carriers agreed to a tentative deal in September that included pay raises for members. But many union workers voted against the deal, in part because they have been pushing for paid sick days, which they currently do not receive.

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The Railway Labor Act is a United States federal law that governs labor relations in the railroad and airline industries. The Act, enacted in 1926 and amended in 1934 and 1936, seeks to substitute bargaining, arbitration, and mediation for strikes to resolve labor disputes.

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Railroad workers and unions are ramping up pressure on the US Congress and Joe Biden to address poor working conditions in the wake of the recent move to block a strike when Congress voted to impose a contract agreement.

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The workers who would go on strike work for freight rail companies, such as Berkshire Hathaway's BNSF and Union Pacific.

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In June of 1922, this nationwide labor conflict saw over 400,000 railroad shopmen and maintenance workers locked in a bitter struggle against deep wage cuts sanctioned by the Railroad Labor Board. These railroad workers faced the grim possibility of losing their jobs to new hires willing to accept lower wages.

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Why are rail workers striking? Unions say they want a pay offer reflecting the rising cost of living. But the rail industry is under pressure to save money, after the pandemic left a hole in its finances. The industry says changes to ways of working need to be agreed in order for pay to go up.

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For years, freight rail workers weren't allowed to call in sick the morning of their shift. They could, however, get approval weeks in advance to take paid personal days. CSX was the first to grant paid sick days to several of its unions and has now granted sick days to 61% of its 17,089 unionized employees.

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Last fall, many union railroad workers in the United States did not have paid sick days. Now, more than sixty percent of them do, Reuters reports.

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