On December 2nd, President Biden signed legislation that forced railroad workers to agree to an employment contract that only granted workers 1 day of paid sick leave.
Railroad workers, who, under current contracts, have no paid sick leave, felt like they were being exploited to prop up the United States economy and Railroad Industry during the pandemic. With workers falling ill and dying to COVID-19, many employees viewed the lack of paid sick leave as a gross mistreatment.
Most railroad workers, including engineers and conductors, are represented by 12 unions. Over the past three years, negotiations between these unions and railroad companies have proved ineffective, and union workers threatened to strike on December 9th, 2022 if no agreement was reached. Strikes would’ve halted the industry’s functions and “30% of the nation’s freight shipments” that railroads account for (Chris Isidore, CNN Business) .
Faced with the possibility of massive supply chain delays, Biden urged Congress to pass a bill that forced union workers to agree to a contract set by Congress. Passed in 1926, the Railway Labor Act grants Congress the power to force contracts upon railroad workers and stop strikes. Initially, the House of Representatives passed a law that would grant union workers a week’s worth of paid sick leave; however, the Senate only gained 52 votes in support of the bill that the House passed—8 votes short to overcome the filibuster.
Ultimately, the House and Senate passed a bill that granted workers only 1 extra day of paid sick leave—a far stretch from the 7 days of paid sick leave that unions demanded. Although this Congress-enforced contract also included an increase in pay, 4 of the labor unions refused to agree to this 1-day-paid-sick-leave contract during the earlier negotiations stages.
President Biden, a self-proclaimed “proud pro-labor President,” signed this bill on December 2nd, forcing railroad workers to accept only 1 day of paid sick leave.
Although Biden had a tight timeline and few options to win over senatorial support for a more pro-worker bill, the railroad workers that supported Biden are undoubtedly disappointed.
Yet, the blame shouldn’t fall entirely on Biden. After all, the Senate’s minority party (most of the initial contract’s opposition was from Republicans) wielded the filibuster to deny underappreciated workers of 6 extra sick days, highlighting the undemocratic nature of the filibuster.
Sources: https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/02/business/railway-labor-act-freight-railroad-strike/index.html
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/11/28/rail-strike-biden-congress/
21 comments:
I agree with your point that this situation highlights the undemocratic nature of the filibuster. One of the characteristics Biden campaign on was being "pro-labor," but it is impossible in this situation to see if he will deliver on his promise because of a possibility of stalling by the minority party. Part of the democratic process in America is seeing if future incumbents deliver on what they promise to do in their first term, and the filibuster is effectively stopping that from happening.
And to focus on the situation itself, it's definitely a work abuse that railroad workers have no more than one sick day. Working in the environment that they do, railroad workers can be subject to illnesses that can keep them out of the job. Not being paid while dealing with a sickness they got on the job paired with all the economic struggles of today's America creates an extremely pressing situation for railroad workers. They definitely deserve more paid sick days, and it's a disgrace (but not a surprise) that railroad workers didn't have a manageable amount of sick days in the first place.
Given that railway workers come in contact with a large number of people (and are thus exposed to more viruses), asking for 7 days of sick time certainly doesn't seem unreasonable. However, it's quite surprising that Biden, who brands himself as pro-labor, didn't push back harder and try to get at least 3 or 4 days of paid sick leave instead of only 1. As the economy is somewhat unstable at the moment, he's clearly worried about the potential that a railway strike during the holiday could help push the economy into a recession, causing even greater economic turmoil. At the end of the day, his decision came down to what he thought would benefit the country the most, although this certainly came at the expense of the railway workers.
The train and transportation industry is an interesting one because in the past car and automobile companies have lobbied in favor of their own vehicles, thus resulting in our car-dependent society. Construction and general legislation regarding trains have always come under criticism, for example, California Highspeed Rail has yet to make substantial progress over the course of a decade. I think the bill granting an extra day of paid sick leave is a win for giving sick leave as it seems like a pretty basic requirement for work. Without further research, I wonder how the Republicans support the opposition against a policy that gives just 1 day of paid sick leave. The filibuster is one of the greatest examples of political polarization in the 21st century in which both sides use it to constantly block opposing legislature. Biden made the right decision, but after the midterm elections, the next two years will be an uphill battle for his possible re-election.
When I heard about this situation, I was first surprised that the train industry still plays such a large role in our economy. I had assumed that much transportation of goods in the modern day was done on planes and ships or at least could be done that way if necessary. Clearly, I wasn't the only one underestimating the importance of trains, as the possible strike caused Biden to go against his "pro-labor" stance. Additionally, the Republicans who voted against the 7 days of sick leave also seem to not understand the importance of these workers. I truly wonder what their reasoning is for voting against that, as it seems it wouldn't hurt them at all.
I think that their demands are not unreasonable, and the fact that Biden didn't push for more days off says a lot since he considers himself a "pro-labor" president. At the same time, he wants to avoid even longer strike causing supply chain issues during the holidays and cost the US economy $2 billion a day. In addition, it was interesting to read that four major railroads transport more than 80% of agricultural freight. Finally, the union was part of the reason why Biden won the election in 2020. With that said, I wonder what will happen in the coming weeks with the republican party and the railroad workers union.
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/12/02/biden-signs-bill-averting-rail-worker-strike-despite-lack-of-paid-sick-days.html
I was quite surprised that before this, the railway workers were not given any sick days. Given that they are such essential workers in the freighting industry, it would be assumed they were given better rights and respect. On the specific topic of how the legislation was passed, despite the mountain pressure of the incoming deadline, I would have hoped for Biden to put in more pressure or stress on congress in order to pass a bill that met more of the union workers demands. Despite increasing their pay, the shift from 7 days of paid sick leave to 1 only one is drastic. The interactions in congress also connect to many of the principles we have been talking about, with the idea of a filibuster, and alternating opinions between each of the houses.
I think that this is a good example of the challenges the executive branch faces. It, naturally, seems ridiculous that the most Biden could do was give the workers one day of sick leave. Some may even be surprised that Biden stepped in to avoid a potential strike at all, given his previous stances as a "pro labor" or union friendly president. Despite these ideas, which were sprinkled through his candidacy and first few years in office, he had to make a difficult decision. The attainable decisions are often not the radical ones. His interest in maintaining the economy, which is reliant on agricultural transportation and railroads specifically, trumped his previously claimed interest in worker's rights and union support. While I personally would've preferred if railroad workers had more sick days and leniency, can we really expect Biden to do any better?
Like other commenters have mentioned, these working conditions were previously unacceptable but the decision isn't necessarily surprising. Given the top priority of many voters is the economy and a failing economy due to strikes would decrease Biden's popularity, it makes sense that Biden would have felt the pressure to create a timely, even if unjust, resolution. However, I'm unsure of how much the decision will negatively impact him as compared to if he continued negotiations and pushed against the Senate. Many people often focus on the decisions themselves, though it may be beneficial to consider the negative impact of alternatives. I am by no means justifying the choice and I believe their working conditions are completely unfair, but I also understand the reasoning behind Biden's decision. Though he is the President, his power is limited by Congress and in this case, his choices are constrained by time. Taking these factors into consideration, I think the decision wasn't all that much of a surprise.
Kayla Roth
Im surprised to read that Labor unions were only able to get 1 day of sick leave, and was even more surprised to find out the railroad workers initially had zero days of sick leave. Railroad workers are extremely important and essential workers and I believe that they definitely deserve more than just one day of sick leave. This article also reminds me of how difficult it can be to pass laws in congress and how almost all of the time laws are not passed in their original form but passed after lots of compromise which can leave people very unhappy. I think its a little bit unfortunate to see how hard it is to get seemingly reasonable laws passed like giving railroad workers 7 sick days but I know that its unrealistic to believe that everyone will see issues the same way. There will always be disagreement on these issues and the disagreement is extremely prevalent when looking at the difficulty of passing and compromising on new laws.
This demonstrates the power of a filibuster because it’s able to change the outcome of situations that may not end up the way the President or Democrats, in this case, want which is to give railroad workers a paid week, but because of the filibuster that was wielded by majority Republican minorities, it changed to only a 1 day paid sick leave, which is a huge difference. This railroad workers wanted this legislation to pass because so many of their workers were getting ill from covid, which is something that they cannot control, so having a paid sick leave gives them justice for wanting to work, but cannot because of their illness. But, I also understand that some jobs don’t even give their workers a paid sick leave, which in this case isn’t fair if some workers receive it and others don’t, which if passed could create some opposition and anger in other workers, but they are Union workers and work for the government, so it is different because any of them could leave, and if that happens than who would be creating new railroads for more transportation access? I feel like this question leads into whether or not congress should pass this bill because some workers may want to quit because they don’t want to get sick and then not work, therefore not making any money to support their families, so then will avert to another job that has better benefits, so in order for them to keep railroad workers to keep working on railroads, or even engineers and conductors that work on railroads to keep working, then they should agree to this bill because it takes at least a week to test negative for covid, so it’s not overly demanding. Plus some jobs have unlimited paid sick leaves, so it makes sense for them to want this legislation to pass, but obviously because of the filibuster’s power, it couldn't.
Although I am personally very disappointed by the lack of paid sick leave days, I understand where Biden is coming from. As Ben mentioned, Biden considers himself to be a "proud pro-labor president." Because of this, I can imagine that settling for one paid sick leave day rather than seven must have been a hard decision for Biden to make. It definitely seems as though Biden is prioritizing the economy over the happiness, financial stability, and wellbeing of railroad workers. I'm curious to see whether this bill will contribute to a drop in the amount of railroad workers in the United States.
Considering the fact that railroad workers going on strike would halt not just the industry's function, but also up to 30% of nationwide shipping, why not at least attempt to bend to their will a little bit? Since they hold so much ground, their word should hold much more weight to them, hence the need to strike, but then stomping all over them with an act from nearly 100 years ago doesn't seem right. They're striking for a reason, yet forcing a single workday on them feels like the equivalent biting the hand that feeds you. Even though Biden was the one to finally sign and decree, rather than trying to punish the railroad workers, it feels like he was trying greatly to come to a compromise and finally get this issue off his plate. But in the end, the workers likely view him more negatively, and they still only get a single day, harming both him, but them even more so. But the killer definitely was the difficulty of passing the original bill, forcing compromise, time and time again.
This post encouraged me to look at the data regarding paid sick days in the US, which is astonishing. The US has yet to implement a national policy on paid sick days, an unfortunate reality for more American workers than those on our railways. One in five workers lack paid sick days, but this is amplified in the service, construction, and farming industries. This percentage goes down to 33%. In total, 33 million Americans do not have paid sick days, highlighting the lack of compassion by many industry leaders for what should be an American right. Thankfully, many unions have pushed back on this lack of policy, but I could not imagine what these numbers would look like without their efforts. Paid sick days should be something that is implemented throughout America, as it benefits the economy by encouraging individuals with chronic conditions to accept jobs that they could not have accepted. When compared to other industrialized nations, this lack of comprehensive and meaningful policy for American workers is an embarrassment.
https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/01/success/railroad-workers-sick-days/index.html
I find this bill that President Biden has signed very disappointing. I understand the difficulties that are presented when a filibuster is threatened to be used, but if Biden is claiming to be a "proud-pro-labor President", then why can't he do more to at least give the labor workers a better sick day deal. Claiming to be pro-labor entails that he supports the labor union, but this bill although better than the current situation is not much of a change for these labor workers. Instead of no days of leave they do get one, but making this claim, reveals his true intentions for the economy. I get hat he is trying to prevent the economy from falling into a recession potentially, but I think he could've done more to give the railroad workers more than one day. Especially considering that Covid is still effecting many people jobs, I would think he would push for more leniency and higher pay for those who do test positive for Covid. I fear that although this a small step towards progress, it could potentially backfire on him as railroad workers may fully quit their jobs due to lack of extreme change occurring.
This issue once again reveals the lack of remorse the American government has for the people. The lack of implementation of a federal sick day policy is staggering to me. I hope that this is the beginning of considerable change for the US government and the general sentiment towards people of the working class.
I don't think this was a tough decision at all for Biden like several commenters have claimed. If he truly cared about working people, he wouldn't have pretended like this was the only way to prevent economic shutdown. His logic places all of the blame on workers and absolutely none on the capitalists that abuse them. Plus, he has a history of being anti-worker and pro-capitalist. Take, for example, his support of Nafta, an agreement that slashed thousands of working-class livelihoods and forced people into lower paying positions. And of course, he supports mass incarceration and militarized policing, a system that targets and brutalizes primarily working-class people. If the workers organize an illegal strike, Biden will have no issue sending the cops in to bust it. He passes decent legislation when it's politically necessary but otherwise, he largely ignores the needs of average Americans and lies directly to their faces. When people said "Settle for Biden" in 2020, they assumed they could hold him to his campaign promises but he will always be an anti-worker conservative before anything else.
While Biden's decision may be disappointing, is was certainly a tough one. Biden was squeezed between his obligation to the US economy and his obligation to worker's rights. If the railroad workers went on strike and the economy crashed, Democrats would face harsh criticism. However, as it stands after the bill was passed, the US is forcing these railroad workers to work under conditions they didn't agree to.
It would have been nice to see Biden pressure the Senate to pass the 7 days of sick leave bill. It is depressing to see that railroad companies who made billions of dollars in profits these past years refuse to grant their workers 7 days of sick leave.
I think while the decision is disappointing, there have to be some clarifications. The problem with railroad workers is that there just isn't enough of them and having one be absent for more than 1 day could be detrimental so I see why the Senate decided on only allowing them one day. But the issue also comes is that it could only take a few days for the railroad workers protesting to see significant economic issues that would force the government to give their demands of just 7 days of sick leave which is way below what other companies and employers usually give its employees. The reason why it can be a massive economic issue is that the US railroad system makes around 2 billion dollars a day for the government and is a means of transporting goods and other services around the US. Is it an essential part of our daily lives without us even knowing it? I believe the actions of the Senate are wrong and if it escalates to a protest I believe it would force the senate to grant them their 7 days of sick leave. This link also explains more about why it could be really bad for our economy if these workers go on strike.
https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/26/economy/railroad-strike-holidays-economic-impact/index.html
I find it disturbing that the success of the economy is placed over the well-being of workers. It is evident that the work of railroad workers is a vital part of sustaining the economy so one would think that they would be supported by the government, however, this seems far from the truth. A single day of paid sick leave, especially in the wake of a pandemic, is an unrealistic policy. While yes, this situation has various layers as the work of these individuals has a rippling effect, I think it is important to recognize that they deserve proper rights. I think that the threat given by the workers to strike rushed the process and ultimately created a forced solution. While yes, maintaining a stable economy is important, so is maintaining the well-being of workers.
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