Western Railroad Discussion > Bravo!

No nationwide railroad strike! The carriers clearly caved on the major sticking point—there will be no further attendance penalties for workers’ time off for medical appointments and bereavement. And the railroaders get a good (and retroactive) pay raise reflecting their essential role in keeping the nation’s critical supply chain moving. Anyone who can read and give an honest appraisal knows just whose personal intervention saved the day. (It should be noted that the Congressional leadership of one of the political parties yesterday introduced legislation that would have imposed a settlement without the attendance policy corrections. The other party rightly rejected it.) Had the strike occurred, the nation’s economy and its supply chain would have been in real peril. Bravo rail workers for hanging tough. Bravo railroads for doing the right thing. And bravo to the key figure who got everyone on the same page!

 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/15/22 06:50 by aehouse.

aehouse Wrote:
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> No nationwide railroad strike!

Yet.

aehouse Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> No nationwide railroad strike! The carriers
> clearly caved on the major sticking point—there
> will be no further attendance penalties for
> workers’ time off for medical appointments and
> bereavement. And the railroaders get a good (and
> retroactive) pay raise reflecting their essential
> role in keeping the nation’s critical supply
> chain moving. Anyone who can read and give an
> honest appraisal knows just whose personal
> intervention saved the day. (It should be noted
> that the Congressional leadership of one of the
> political parties yesterday introduced legislation
> that would have imposed a settlement without the
> attendance policy corrections. The other party
> rightly rejected it.) Had the strike occurred, the
> nation’s economy and its supply chain would have
> been in real peril. Bravo rail workers for hanging
> tough. Bravo railroads for doing the right thing.
> And bravo to the key figure who got everyone on
> the same page!
>
>  
Right now inflation is running at 8% with no end in sight. A 25% pay increase over five years is the same as a 4.5% a year compounded. The current inflation rate (8%) over five years amounts to a five year inflation rate of 46%! 

In other words, this contract in the present economic climate will resut in railroaders only haveing (1.25/1.46) = 78% as much buying power in five years. 

And you call this a "good pay raise"??



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/15/22 08:01 by Narniaman.

Narniaman Wrote:
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> Right now inflation is running at 8% with no end
> in sight. A 25% pay increase over five years is
> the same as a 4.5% a year compounded. The current
> inflation rate (8%) over five years amounts to an
> inflation rate of 46%! 
>
> In other words, this contract in the present
> economic climate will resut in railroaders only
> haveing (1.25/1.46) = 78% as much buying power in
> five years. 
>
> And you call this a "good pay raise"??

~10% better than what the RRs wanted, ~40% less than what the Unions wanted... with medical holding steady through the term, that leans it a tick more towards the Unions favor. But these things only last 5 years, and were already nearly 3 years into this current 'tentative' contract....

The golves won't even get a chance to dry before the next round.


~ Mr. MRL

Look is it less than the current rate of inflation? Yes, but that is due to the poor polices of the current administration.... you aren't realistically going to get a raise to cover all that. Most others professions haven't. So you need to be realistic. Is this a good deal for you guys? I don't know. Hopefully it is.

Posted from Android

aehouse Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> No nationwide railroad strike! The carriers
> clearly caved on the major sticking point—there
> will be no further attendance penalties for
> workers’ time off for medical appointments and
> bereavement. And the railroaders get a good (and
> retroactive) pay raise reflecting their essential
> role in keeping the nation’s critical supply
> chain moving. Anyone who can read and give an
> honest appraisal knows just whose personal
> intervention saved the day. (It should be noted
> that the Congressional leadership of one of the
> political parties yesterday introduced legislation
> that would have imposed a settlement without the
> attendance policy corrections. The other party
> rightly rejected it.) Had the strike occurred, the
> nation’s economy and its supply chain would have
> been in real peril. Bravo rail workers for hanging
> tough. Bravo railroads for doing the right thing.
> And bravo to the key figure who got everyone on
> the same page!
>
>  

We already have paid bereavement leave for certain family members.  I thought that was a national thing.

aehouse Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> No nationwide railroad strike! The carriers
> clearly caved on the major sticking point—there
> will be no further attendance penalties for
> workers’ time off for medical appointments and
> bereavement. And the railroaders get a good (and
> retroactive) pay raise reflecting their essential
> role in keeping the nation’s critical supply
> chain moving. Anyone who can read and give an
> honest appraisal knows just whose personal
> intervention saved the day. (It should be noted
> that the Congressional leadership of one of the
> political parties yesterday introduced legislation
> that would have imposed a settlement without the
> attendance policy corrections. The other party
> rightly rejected it.) Had the strike occurred, the
> nation’s economy and its supply chain would have
> been in real peril. Bravo rail workers for hanging
> tough. Bravo railroads for doing the right thing.
> And bravo to the key figure who got everyone on
> the same page!
>
>  

We must have been reading two different agreements. No cheering from craft side...Try again in 30 days.

Posted from Android

So another cooling off period? Well hope they can agree sooner rather than later ASAP to avoid another attempted strike next month!

Posted from Android

ProAmtrak Wrote:
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> So another cooling off period? Well hope they can
> agree sooner rather than later ASAP to avoid
> another attempted strike next month!

Just my opinion but, I don't believe that this is "another cooling off period". The members must now vote to ACCEPT the terms & conditions of the proposed agreement. Just like the Machinists Union (IAM) did NOT do.

With all this talk about 8 percent inflation one should remember that all the long-term predictors (interest rates, polls of expectations of future inflation, etc.) suggest inflation in the area of 2 to 3 percent--or just about what has been the Federal Reserve's target for many years.

BobB Wrote:
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> With all this talk about 8 percent inflation one
> should remember that all the long-term predictors
> (interest rates, polls of expectations of future
> inflation, etc.) suggest inflation in the area of
> 2 to 3 percent--or just about what has been the
> Federal Reserve's target for many years.

No matter what the real numbers are there IS inflation and while it always hurts lower income earners the hardest, it effects everybody.  The Fed is going to have to raise interest rates multiple times if it wants to avoid risking either a serious recession or "stagflation" by the 2nd quarter of 2023.   

Allen

I have no skin in this contract but, I think railroaders are making a mistake not demanding one day off per week.

tomstp Wrote:
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> I have no skin in this contract but, I think
> railroaders are making a mistake not demanding one
> day off per week.

How do you know that demand hasn't been made?

None of us will know what's actually in the tentative agreement until we see the exact verbiage.

Trains news states road crews can have one day a week off in the new contract..
https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/details-emerge-of-20-hour-deal-meeting-that-produced-labor-deal/
First I have seen of that and I imagine road crews will really like that.

That's surprising considering for years it seemed you had no life outside the railroad on the Class 1 Freight Side being on call 24/7 365 Days a year!

Posted from Android

tomstp Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Trains news states road crews can have one day a
> week off in the new contract..
> https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/
> details-emerge-of-20-hour-deal-meeting-that-produc
> ed-labor-deal/
> First I have seen of that and I imagine road crews
> will really like that.

I can believe something I read on an internet message board and/or from some foamer magazine, or I can wait until I get my ballot and information directlyfrom the union.

Not sure which one I should choose...

tomstp Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Trains news states road crews can have one day a
> week off in the new contract..
> https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/
> details-emerge-of-20-hour-deal-meeting-that-produc
> ed-labor-deal/
> First I have seen of that and I imagine road crews
> will really like that.

Railroaders won’t be saying “Bravo” when the crew dispatcher calls to board them at 11:59pm going into their day off.
Bravo. Yeah right!!!

Short-Hood-Lead Wrote:
> Railroaders won’t be saying “Bravo” when the
> crew dispatcher calls to board them at 11:59pm
> going into their day off.
> Bravo. Yeah right!!!

So true. If a railroad moves the cutoff up earlier, they just bump the call up earlier too.