United States President Joe Biden said that his administration was in talks with labor unions to address demands in order to prevent a looming railroad strike that could be detrimental to the country's supply chain.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday outside a fire station on Nantucket Island, Massachusetts, during a Thanksgiving Holiday visit, the president did not reveal additional information regarding the negotiations.
Looming Railroad Strike
The Democrat said that his team was already in touch with all the parties involved in the matter but noted that he himself was not yet directly engaged in the discussions yet. His remarks come as more than 300 groups, including the National Retail Federation last month urged Biden to help prevent a strike that could freeze supply chains.
A potential strike could idle shipments of food and fuel and also inflict billions of dollars of damage to what is considered an already struggling American economy. Several of the groups renewed calls earlier this week for Biden and Congress to intervene quickly in order to prevent the strike or an employer lockout ahead of the holiday season, as per Yahoo News.
The potential railroad strike could freeze roughly 30% of the United States' cargo shipments by weight, stoke inflation, and cost the American economy as much as $2 billion per day. The latter could result in a decade of transport problems that would affect U.S. energy, agriculture, manufacturing, healthcare, and retail sectors.
Workers at the largest U.S. rail union voted on Monday against a tentative contract deal that was reached in September, raising the chances of a year-end strike. Labor unions also criticized the railroads' sick leave and attendance policies and lack of paid sick days for short-term illness as factors in the issue.
According to CNBC, on Tuesday, the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS) announced that it was extending its status quo period through Dec. 8 to alight with the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees (BMWED), SMART-TD, and the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers.
Demands for Higher Pay
If an agreement is not reached by that date, a coordinated strike between the unions could start as soon as Dec. 9. The railroad unions that voted for ratification noted that they will not cross the picket lines and will continue to support their fellow union workers. The situation poses a risk of a nationwide freight rail shutdown.
Federal safety measures mandate that railroad carriers begin preparing for a strike at least seven days before the date of the strike. Railroad industry data showed a drop of 1,975 carloads of chemical shipments during the week of Sept. 10, the time when railroads stopped accepting shipments due to the previous threat of a strike.
The labor unions have argued about pay, job cuts, and changes to terms and conditions as being part of their reasons for the potential strike. They added that train companies have not made any offer on compensation, which they argued should increase to reflect the rising cost of living in the United States amid rising inflation, BBC reported.
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