President Joe Biden on Monday asked Congress to intervene to prevent an economically crippling freight rail strike, even though it means delivering a defeat to his allies in the labor movement.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi immediately announced she will call a vote this week to carry out Bidens request, which will mean that paid sick leave for the 115,000 workers involved in negotiations wont be included in the deal.
Biden had held out for months on seeking congressional action, instead opting to give the freight rail industry and 12 of its unions more time to negotiate a contract. But as warnings mounted that a strike could begin as soon as Dec. 9, threatening to interrupt U.S. power and water supplies and devastate the broader economy, the pro-labor, pro-rail president said Monday that he saw no path to resolve the dispute at the bargaining table.
The development came two months after Labor Secretary Marty Walsh held an all-night bargaining session at his agencys headquarters that produced a tentative deal, temporarily defusing the strike threat. But since then, members of three of the 12 unions voted to reject the agreement.
On Monday, Biden asked that Congress act without any modifications or delay to impose the September settlement.
In a statement, Biden called himself a proud pro-labor president and said he was reluctant to recommend Congress step in, but that the economic consequences of inaction were too great. He also included a pointed message to Democratic lawmakers who might be inclined to side with workers who oppose the agreement.
Some in Congress want to modify the deal to either improve it for labor or for management. However well-intentioned, any changes would risk delay and a debilitating shutdown. The agreement was reached in good faith by both sides, he said.
Though a bitter pill for labor to swallow, enacting the agreement would put an end to the cliffhanger deadlines that have loomed every few weeks since summer, and allow all manner of industries that depend on freight rail shipments to stand down from doomsday preparations. Freight rail moves many bulk goods, including grains for people and livestock, energy supplies and even chlorine to ensure communities have clean drinking water.
Nodding to the looming holiday season, Biden said we cannot let our strongly held conviction for better outcomes for workers deny workers the benefits of the bargain they reached, and hurl this nation into a devastating rail freight shutdown.
Soon after Bidens statement, Pelosi issued one of her own, endorsing the move and promising to put legislation on the House floor this week. Considering that key GOP lawmakers have endorsed this approach, it is likely that any legislation would have enough support to overcome Democratic objectors.