Biden Urges Congress to Intervene, Avert Rail Strike That Could Inflict ‘Billions’ in Economic Damage

President Joe Biden waves as he boards Air Force One at Nantucket Memorial Airport in Massachusetts, on Nov. 27, 2022. Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

President Joe Biden on Monday urged Congress to pass legislation to immediately adopt the tentative agreement between railroad workers and operators in an effort to avert a “potentially crippling national rail shutdown” that is set to start in less than two weeks.

A potential strike on Dec. 9 could bring rail travel to a standstill while impacting the U.S. supply chain and inflicting billions of dollars in economic damage, officials have warned.

An analysis by the Association of American Railroads (pdf) published in September said such a strike could cost the U.S. economy more than $2 billion every day at a time when inflation is already soaring.

Congress could step in to prevent such a strike from occurring by imposing contract terms on railroad workers under the Railway Labor Act which was passed in 1926.

“Let me be clear: a rail shutdown would devastate our economy. Without freight rail, many U.S. industries would shut down. My economic advisors report that as many as 765,000 Americans – many union workers themselves – could be put out of work in the first two weeks alone,” Biden said in a statement from the White House on Monday.

The president added that farmers and communities across the country could also be impacted by the strike; with the former being unable to feed their livestock and the latter potentially losing access to clean drinking water.

Freight trains travel through Houston, Texas, on Sept. 14, 2022. Brandon Bell/Getty Images

‘No Path to Resolve the Dispute’

Biden asked lawmakers to adopt a tentative deal brokered by the White House announced in September “without any modifications or delay.”

Under that deal, union members would receive a 24 percent pay raise over five years along with improved health care benefits, and operating craft workers would be granted the ability to take unscheduled leave for medical needs.

Since that deal was announced in September, the majority of the unions in the industry, approximately eight, have voted to approve the deal.

However, four unions, which collectively represent more than half of the 115,000 workers in the industry, have voted to reject it while pushing for paid sick leave to be added to the agreement, something they currently do not receive.

Freight rail companies aren’t budging though, pointing to high pay and short-term disability benefits among workers.

Biden said on Monday that Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg have been in regular contact with labor leaders and management since then but that they believe there is “no path to resolve the dispute at the bargaining table.”

Workers service the tracks at the Metra/BNSF railroad yard outside of downtown Chicago, Ill., on Sept. 13, 2022. Scott Olson/Getty Images

‘Proud Pro-Labor President’

The secretaries have instead recommended that the administration seek out congressional action, Biden said.

While Biden insisted that he is a “proud pro-labor President” and “reluctant to override the ratification procedures,” Congress must use its powers to adopt the deal or risk the economic impact of a shutdown, he said.

On Monday, more than 400 groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Manufacturers, National Retail Federation, American Petroleum Institute, National Restaurant Association, American Trucking Associations, and others, called on Congress to intervene in the situation and warned that impacts of the potential strike could be felt from as early as Dec. 5.

The groups noted in a letter that a strike could impact the delivery of fertilizers, chlorine, and other products essential to clean water, as well as food supply across the nation and electricity generation.

In response to Biden’s statement, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that while Congress is “reluctant to bypass the standard ratification process for the Tentative Agreement” it must do so in order to prevent a “catastrophic nationwide rail strike, which would grind our economy to a halt.”

The Democrat said the House will take up legislation this week to impose the deal that unions agreed to in September with “no poison pills or changes to the negotiated terms” and send it to the Senate.

Tom Ozimek contributed to this report.