11th-hour brinkmanship from the freight rail industry, its unions and both parties in Congress.

Looks like this compromise is falling apart. Of course, the real goal was always to kick the can down the road until the midterms are over so in that regard it worked. The worksers' main issues were related to quality of life issues, and this "compromise" never addressed that.

I suspect Congress and the Biden admin will come in and force workers to take a **** deal.

 

https://www.wsj.com/articles/joe-biden-stops-a-railroad-strike-11669940687?mod=hp_opin_pos_1

Joe Biden Stops a Railroad Strike
He picks the economy over unions. Why not do the same for families?
By The Editorial Board
Dec. 1, 2022 7:24 pm ET

A looming national rail strike next week will be narrowly averted, after the Senate voted 80-15 on Thursday to impose a bargaining agreement on intransigent unions. Brokered by the Biden Administration, the deal includes an extra paid day off, along with a 24% pay raise through 2024. Eight of the 12 rail unions ratified it, but four voted it down.

After President Biden called on Congress to impose the agreement, the House voted to do so Wednesday. But progressives also insisted on passing a second measure to rewrite the deal and add seven paid sick days. That failed in the Senate, 52-43.

Six Republicans voted yes, including Sen. Marco Rubio, who was elected as a free-market Tea Partier, but who long ago replaced his tricorn hat with a red Trump cap. Three of the six—Mr. Rubio, Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley—have designs on the White House. After Mr. Cruz voted yes, Bernie Sanders quipped: “I always knew you were a socialist.”

Some estimates say a rail strike could have cost the economy up to $2 billion a day. Based on an economic study, Mr. Biden said 765,000 people might have been thrown out of work within two weeks. He also warned that Americans “could lose access to chemicals necessary to ensure clean drinking water.”

Congress simply can’t allow one-third of the unions in one industry to hold hostage the economy and public safety. The Senate also rejected, 25-70, a proposal by Sen. Dan Sullivanto delay a strike for 60 days so the parties could keep negotiating. But at this point the rail talks have already gone on for three years. How would another two months have improved on the deal brokered by the Presidential Emergency Board? The priority was to keep the trains running.

Give credit to Mr. Biden for going against political type. He promised to be “the most pro-union president you’ve ever seen,” and his wife belongs to a teachers union, the National Education Association, that does lifetime harm to millions of American students.

Railroad employees who wanted more will no doubt shout that they have been betrayed. But they had ample opportunity to exercise their right to collectively bargain, and the deal offers the generous raise, plus a freeze on healthcare co-pays and deductibles. Name another industry where the latter is true.

Mr. Biden had a choice: Side with the special interests of four recalcitrant rail unions, or do what’s best for millions of American workers and consumers in the broader economy.

He chose right. This isn’t a prediction, but if Mr. Biden wants it to be, this could be the start of his long-delayed turn toward the center. Why defend the Jones Act, which is protectionism for waterborne shipping at the expense of the climate and many industries? Why side with steel companies that want endless tariffs, when more jobs depend on using steel? Why side with K-12 teachers unions, instead of families that want a better education in charter schools?

OK, that won’t happen, but we can still dream, can’t we?

The consequences of a railroad strike were damaging enough to break through ideology, but if Mr. Biden wants to help his sagging approval rating, the same principle applies elsewhere.

Appeared in the December 2, 2022, print edition as 'Joe Biden Stops a Railroad Strike'.

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Disappointed in Biden.

 

I'm sure this will cause some consternation among the further left wing of Democrats and Unions but I doubt most of the electorate cares. What they would care though is if we started seeing shortages at stores during Christmas and inflation takes off even faster because of supply chain shortages.

I think Biden read this right politically.

 

the art of moderation many independents had hoped for . . . finally

 

This has to be one of the worst things Biden has done. Pitched himself as the most labor-friendly president in US history, but he's actually now more of a union buster. It's disgraceful and should be bad for him long term as many rail workers just quit in protest and that throws the rail industry in chaos.

Just so people know: right now the workers have to give 30 days notice before they are sick to take a day off. So yes, you read that right: you have to know 30 days in advance if you're going to get sick. It's really insane and no one actually thinks this is how things should work. Biden could fix this immediately but he's choosing not to.

 

I don’t see how one action wipes away decades of a pro union policies. I believe 4 out of the 12 unions voted against the new deal which started this, so it’s not like the majority of the unions hadn’t already agreed to the deal.

I’m not sure how Biden could fix this alone or immediately? Where’s your outrage for all the senators who voted against the House approved bill that would grant them sick days?

Frankly, a major strike in a critical industry over sick days (when you negotiated a good pay raise, a cap on healthcare premiums, and more PTO) is unacceptable.

 

Agreed. Reading the news, people are acting like sick days was the only thing being negotiated and that none of the unions had approved the deal.

Here’s what the railroad unions got:

• A 24 percent pay raise from 2020 to 2024, including an immediate 14.1 percent raise;
• A $5,000 bonus in annual installments over five years;
• Temporary freezes in monthly healthcare copays, deductibles and coinsurance costs;
• New time off for routine, preventative, and emergency medical care; and
• Protections for the two-man crew system.

 

No doubt. It would have been a national disaster had the strike gone forward. Doesn't mean it's right to kick the legs out from under the unions' right to collectively bargain and to strike.

 

Props to Bernie for trying to put the burden of overbearing government dictates onto shareholders instead of workers. Shame on all the senators who voted for the shareholders.

 

I don’t disagree but it’s one of those big picture issues of “the greater good” that is always difficult.

 

Biden hasn't been president for decades. He said he'd be the most pro-labor president in US history. He is not living up to that.

Biden brokered the initial bad deal that never took into account the actual grievances of the workers. Then when it failed, he just punted the issue to others rather than working to adjust the deal. The rail companies wagered the government would be on their side and against the workers and they were right. Instead of putting pressure on these companies, Biden admin put it all on the workers to accept a deal that never addressed their primary issue.

And yes it is disgraceful for those in the House and Senate to vote against it as well, especially if they describe themselves as pro labor or pro working class.

The sick days request is very reasonable. You won't be shocked to hear that management and office workers at the rail companies don't have the same shitty policy when it comes to quality of life issues.

 

Considering Biden got Republican support for his infrastructure bill, CHIPS bill and most recently Marriage Protection Act I think he's done pretty well with Moderates.

 

Utilitarianism has been used as justification for pretty much every mass atrocity in human history.

 

True the unions didn't get everything they want and understandably aren't happy. With an industry like this though they do have to consider how widespread public support would be. It doesn't seem like the public was going to be understanding to the unions and while the unions certainly could say we only care about our members they risked this very thing happening of government stepping in and calling it a matter of national interest.

So yes on principles this is a betrayal of labor unions. Practically though this will likely give Biden more support.

 

Really? How so?

 

yeah!

 

It's a philosophy that has been used to justify genocide, eugenics etc.

 

It’s also the philosophy that has justified maximizing welfare for 8 billion people

 

That's a pretty shallow understanding a principle that is for doing the most good for the most people.