Environment and Energy
December 3, 2022
Biden Signs Law to Avert Nationwide Rail Strike
Written by Becca Moczygemba
President Joseph Biden on Friday Dec. 2 signed into law a bill aimed at averting a nationwide rail strike.
The law compels railroad unions to accept a tentative agreement reached in September.
The unions opposed the agreement because it did not provide paid sick days. Railroad companies and the unions faced a Dec. 9 deadline to reach a deal, after which point there could have been strike.
The government is authorized to intervene in contract negotiations if a strike might have serious economic impact because of the Railway Labor Act, which was enacted in 1926.
Biden signed the law after the House passed legislation to avert a rail strike on Wednesday. The next day the Senate followed. The swift passage followed concerns that a nationwide strike could hobble the national supply chain and the economy.
Domestic steel lobbying groups had expressed their support for the law because steel relies heavily on the rail system. The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) estimated that railroads moved more than 1.5 million carloads of steel and steelmaking raw materials last year.
By Becca Moczygemba, Becca@SteelMarketUpdate.com
