Rail strike potential grows, threatening to worsen supply chain backlogs, inflation
NBCAPR 2 2023
It’s bad enough that the Biden admin. botched this agreement and has put the country on the precipice of a catastrophic rail strike. What makes it worse is that the president did a victory lap — even though it wasn’t a done deal, and the deadline was scheduled for after the midterms so it wouldn’t hurt Democrats’ chances. Worse yet, the White House doesn’t have much of a contingency plan for dealing with a work stoppage.
With the White House’s help, the companies and the unions made great progress on an agreement that included the largest pay increase in 40 years. This deal was rejected by the narrowest of margins, so there has to be common ground that can be found to avert a strike. It’s time to finish the substantive gains made throughout these negotiations.