Article by: Rick Walker, Vice President, TradeInsights, LCB, CCS

In September, the White House announced a tentative agreement between the railroads and unions which averted an imminent strike. That tentative agreement has been laboring since as some of the smaller unions did not like the deal, and now “One of the nation’s largest unions has rejected the contract, once again thrusting the industry into uncertainty and raising the possibility of a strike,” reported by the Washington Post yesterday.

“Members of the third-largest rail union rejected the proposed five-year contract 56% to 43%, officials said. Both sides have agreed to resume negotiations until at least Nov. 19, and railroads are expected to continue operating normally in the meantime,” according to the newspaper. “But the two largest unions, the Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, Transportation union, which represents conductors, and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, which represents engineers, have yet to vote—throwing those outcomes into question,” CNN reported. “The engineers and conductors union votes are cause for ‘apprehension on all sides,’ said the source. Online chatter among the conductors union and engineers union members signal they want a strike before even seeing the contract, while some are calling for reason, the source said.”

We’ll keep watching these developments closely and hopefully, the unions and management can come to a final agreement soon so they can keep shippers and their supply chains moving!

Stay tuned for further updates!