Biden Administration Prepares for Potential Nationwide Railroad Shutdown

Lorenz DuchampsSeptember 14, 2022

The administration of President Joe Biden has been preparing a contingency plan to ensure deliveries of critical goods by keeping other transportation lines functional should thousands of union rail workers go on strike following stalled labor negotiations, according to a White House official.

“We are working with other modes of transportation, including shippers, truckers, and air freight to see how they can step in and keep goods moving in case of this rail shutdown,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at a news conference on Sept. 13.

“The administration has also been working with relevant agencies to assess what supply chains and commodities are most likely to face severe disruptions,” said the spokesperson.

Jean-Pierre said Biden, as well as several Cabinet secretaries, made “hundreds of calls” and have met with railroad unions and railroad companies since early spring to prevent a strike.

Some 60,000 union members working for railroads, including Union Pacific, Berkshire Hathaway’s BNSF, CSX, and Norfolk Southern, could go on strike as early as Sept. 16 if their demands over pay and working conditions aren’t met.

The potential shutdown could freeze almost 30 percent of U.S. cargo shipments, stoke inflation, impede supplies of food and fuel, cost the U.S. economy about $2 billion per day, and cause transportation woes.

In a statement on Wednesday, the International Association of Machinists (IAM) District Lodge 19 said nearly 5,000 IAM members have voted to reject the tentative labor agreement based on the recommendations of the Biden administration’s Presidential Emergency Board (PEB), marking the union as the first to have voted to authorize a strike as the “cooling off” period in negotiations nears the end.

“We have waited long enough for a decent contract, and we demand to strike … The IAM’s unauthorized decision to leave the coalition left us vulnerable and caused