10/4/2022
Another union has approved the deal it made with the major freight railroads last month that helpedĀ prevent a strikeĀ to secure 24% raises and $5,000 in bonuses for the workers it represents.
The American Train Dispatchers Association said Tuesday that 64% of its roughly 1,600 members approved the deal with Union Pacific, BNSF, Kansas City Southern, CSX, Norfolk Southern and other railroads. The union said dispatchers will receive an average payout of $17,500 when the five-year deal becomes final because it is retroactive to 2020.
Four smaller railroad unions have now approved their deals with the railroads, but the two biggest unions that represent engineers and conductors won’t vote onĀ their tentative agreementsĀ until mid-November. All 12Ā unionsĀ that represent some 115,000 workers have to approve these deals to prevent a strike, but much of the attention is focused on the engineers and conductors because they have some of the biggest concerns about schedules and working conditions.
Most of the deals the rail unions are voting on closely follow theĀ recommendationsĀ that a special board of arbitrators that President Joe Biden appointed made this summer to help resolve the contract dispute that began nearly three years ago. The administration put pressure on both sides to reach agreements before the Sept. 16 strike deadline because of concerns about how a strike mightĀ cripple the economy.
In addition to what that board recommended, the unions that represent engineers and conductors ā the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen and the Transportation Division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers unions ā also negotiated to get three unpaid leave days for medical appointments and a promise that workers wonāt be penalized if they are hospitalized. The railroads also agreed to negotiate further with those unions about improving the scheduling of regular days off for workers.
Those two unions have said that theĀ strict attendance policiesĀ some railroads have put in place after the industryĀ cut nearly one-third of its jobsĀ over the past six years make it difficult to take any time off and keep workers on call 24-7.
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