Posts tagged National Mediation Board
BACKGROUNDER: Potential Railroad Strike
September 14, 2022 // On Friday, September 16, 2022, railroad workers could go on strike. This would effectively shut down the nation’s freight rail system and have spillover effects on commuter rail like Amtrak, which is already canceling long-distance routes. If a strike or lockout occurs, Congress has the ability to intervene and has done so in the past. An economic analysis by the American Association of Railroads using the Federal Railroad Administration’s model found a railroad shutdown could cost our economy $2 billion per day. Similarly, a coalition of agricultural organizations said in a letter to Congress, “Uninterrupted rail service is vital to the American agricultural economy.”
Biden administration jumps into rail, union talks hoping to avert strike
September 8, 2022 // Such a work stoppage runs the risk of stymieing the U.S.’ supply chain at a point when the system is already strained, prices are historically high, and the peak season for agricultural commodities is just around the corner. Thirteen unions representing U.S. railroad workers have spent years renegotiating their contracts with carriers represented by the National Carriers’ Conference Committee. SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson, BLET President Dennis Pierce,
Electronic voting means more attacks on worker privacy
July 18, 2022 // Most employers do request an election because cards are notoriously unreliable, as shown by studies, congressional testimony, and even admissions from union organizers. Too often, workers are deceived or intimidated into signing cards. At other times, workers who don’t want a union will sign a card just to get the organizer to go away. The NLRB has failed to protect employees who have been threatened during a card-check campaign. In one case, the NLRB held that because an employee soliciting signatures was not working directly for a union it was all right that the “card solicitor allegedly stated that the employee had better sign a card because if she did not, the union would come and get her children and it would also slash her car tires.”
Rail union members could go on strike Monday amid contract impasse
July 15, 2022 // The National Carriers’ Conference Committee (NCCC), which represents the interests of the U.S. Class I railroad operations at the bargaining table, has said their proposals offered competitive employee benefits and compensation at levels higher than most U.S. industries. If an emergency board is established by President Joe Biden to oversee the dispute, then that board will conduct hearings and issue a report. A work stoppage would be prohibited for 30 days following the report’s issuance, according to NCCC. Congress could also potentially intervene. Dennis Pierce
BLET Members Vote ‘Yes’ on Nationwide Strike Authorization
July 14, 2022 // The National Mediation Board (NMB) on June 14 set in motion a 90-day-maximum time clock toward a national railroad shutdown. It released BLET and 11 other rail craft unions (bargaining in two coalitions collectively representing some 115,000 rail workers) from NMB-guided mediation with most Class I freight railroads and many smaller ones, ending attempts to negotiate, voluntarily, amendments to existing wage, benefits and work rules agreements. This triggered a “cooling off period,” which is set to expire at 12:01 a.m. EDT on July 18, 2022. At that point, self-help is available to the parties, unless President Joe Biden appoints a Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) pursuant to Section 10 of the Railway Labor Act. A PEB would halt any strike or lockout by the parties, and would investigate and issue a report and recommendations concerning the dispute. Dennis R. Pierce,
CDW ISSUES REPORT ON THE DANGERS OF ONLINE VOTING IN UNION REPRESENTATION ELECTIONS
July 12, 2022 // “Electronic voting is a system ripe for coercion, intimidation, and harassment. It violates workers’ privacy and makes it impossible for the NLRB to safeguard the election. Moreover, as the report notes, the National Mediation Board, several states, and various foreign countries have all shelved online voting programs because of costs and cybersecurity concerns. For these reasons, the Supreme Court, other federal courts, and the NLRB itself have all recognized that secret ballots are the best method for determining the will of the workers. Online Voting in Union Representation Elections: The Latest Attempt to Eliminate Workers’ Right to Secret Ballots, online voting,
National rail labor strike possible July 18 unless President Joe Biden intervenes
July 11, 2022 // However, the Railway Labor Act, which sets out the rules for these kinds of disputes, allows President Joe Biden to appoint a three-member emergency board to investigate and make recommendations to both sides about how to settle their differences. The union is not allowed to strike during the Presidential Emergency Board’s investigation. The main issues are wages and benefits. Railroad freight traffic, Jeremy Ferguson,
Railroad talks stall, so Biden likely to pick review board
June 20, 2022 // Railroad contract talks remain deadlocked after more than two years of negotiations, so President Joe Biden will likely soon have to appoint a board to help settle the dispute. Josh Funk, rail crews, Dennis Pierce, UP, BNSF, CSX, Norfolk Southern, Kansas City Southern,
Democrats’ Proposed Labor Funding Increases Fall Nearly Flat
March 11, 2022 // Federal Funding Legislation. fiscal year 2022, Backgrounder: The final package, after bipartisan and bicameral negotiations, includes just moderate funding increases for these programs or, as in the case of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), no increase at all.