Des Moines, Iowa — The state legislative director for a union that represents transportation workers says the contract being imposed on the nation’s rail workers sets a troubling precedent.
Chris Smith of Tama is a local leader in the SMART TD Union, which rejected the tentative agreement in November.
At President Biden’s request, Congress voted to avert a strike and force rail workers to accept the terms of a tentative agreement on wages and benefits. Members of seven different unions rallied at the Iowa Capitol on December 13th to voice their objections. Ross Grooters is chairman of the Iowa State Legislative Board for the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen.
Grooters says there seems to have been a collective sigh of relief in the country that a railroad strike was averted, but he says the issues that are causing supply chain disruptions haven’t been resolved.
Grooters says trains aren’t properly staffed. Freight railroads have pared staff dramatically since 2015 to reduce costs and increase profits. According to the Associated Press, more than 22 percent of the jobs at Union Pacific, CFX, and Norfolk Southern have been eliminated in the past five years.
