Crawford wants to stay out of strike
Timing a concern as holiday nears
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Rick Crawford, R-Ark., does not want Congress to get involved in the possible national railroad strike, but the option remains on the table.
Federal lawmakers may have to end the disagreement if freight rail companies and unions cannot agree to terms before Dec. 9. President Joe Biden’s Presidential Emergency Board offered a deal in August with a 24% pay increase over five years — including an immediate 14% raise — and $5,000 in bonuses. The proposal also includes one additional personal day and a revised attendance policy for workers.
Four unions representing about 60,000 workers opted against ratifying the arrangement. Union representatives argue companies need to offer paid sick leave and better scheduling. A freight rail coalition contends unions approved unpaid “short-term absences” over paid sick leave in previous labor agreements.
Crawford, of Jonesboro, serves as the ranking member of the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials. He
and Hazardous Materials. He helped introduce legislation in September requiring railroads and unions to accept the presidential board’s recommendations if both sides cannot reach a deal.
“I really hope that cooler heads will prevail here and that both sides will recognize that this is not in our interest economically, particularly at this time, to be making these kinds of threats or taking this kind of action,” Crawford told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Crawford’s main concern stems from a possible strike’s economic effects. According to the Association of American Railroads, a freight rail strike would cost the economy $2 billion a day. The organization argues a short-term switch to trucks and barges “would be costly and disruptive,” noting there are not enough truck drivers to meet demand.
“The timing couldn’t be worse as we’re approaching Christmas,” Crawford said.
Stores have already received items for the holidays, but retailers have expressed concerns about transporting food and items purchased online if a strike happens.
“At some point, you have to say, ‘Can you meet us in the middle here?’ ” Crawford said of the recommendations. “That sounds like a pretty good deal to me.”
Gerald Sales, the Arkansas state legislative director with the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers’ Transportation Division, said the freight rail workforce is feeling pressure to perform duties with limited opportunities to take time off.
Sales, a conductor, said rail workers spend up to 260 hours a month away from home.
“The issue is we don’t have enough people to run the trains that they’re trying to run,” he said. “They’re forcing us to work at a level that’s unsafe and unhealthy. It’s not really something we can sustain, we feel, any longer.”
Ending the strike would add to Congress’ end-of-theyear to-do list, headlined by the need to pass a government funding bill by Dec. 16.
Sens. Richard Burr, R-N.C., and Roger Wicker, R-Miss., have introduced a resolution similar to the House measure ending a possible strike. Crawford said the Senate and House could quickly pass legislation given identical language between the resolutions.