Railroads say unions’ request to end mediation is premature

ARLINGTON, Va. — The organization representing railroads in bargaining with labor over a new national contract is disputing a request by unions to move the process from mediation to arbitration, saying the two sides have not yet reached an impasse.

The statement issued Friday by the railroad group, the National Carrier’s Conference Committee, was responding to a request by two unions — the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers-Mechanical Division (SMART-MD).

Those unions made the request in a Feb. 23 letter to the National Mediation Board, saying “further mediation is not likely to result in agreement.” The request was supported by the Coordinated Bargaining Coalition, which represents those unions and eight others in the negotiations with the railroads [see “Unions ask for end to mediation …,” Trains News Wire, March 1, 2022].

But NCCC, which says that the parties have not yet met the standard for an impasse under the Railway Labor Act, which requires “every reasonable effort” to settle the dispute. The NCCC says the two unions “have failed to engage in bargaining over the railroads’ proposals in any meaningful way” and will make their case to continue mediation to the assigned mediator and the National Mediation Board. The unions previously claimed the railroads were refusing to bargain in good faith.

The railroads say they are seeking “to modernize labor agreements to manage long-term structural changes in rail traffic,” while the unions say the most recent proposals include significant worker concessions on health and welfare benefits. The railroads’ desire for one-person train crews is a major part of the negotiations.

The NCCC represents some 30 railroads in all, and is organized by the National Railway Labor Conference, which represents all U.S. Class I railroads plus some smaller operators. The Coordinated Bargaining Council represents about 115,000 employees.