President Biden said a “real economic crisis” was averted by a deal reached early Thursday morning by railroad and union negotiators.
The agreement between the two came just before the Friday morning deadline to avoid a freight train strike.
“I couldn’t think of an alternative,” Biden said. “If they had actually gone on strike, the supply chain in this country would have come to a complete halt. We would have seen a real economic crisis.”
Biden made the comments in an interview with CBS’s “60 Minutes,” which is scheduled to air on Sunday.
The deal, agreed early Thursday morning, will provide rail workers with a 24% pay rise over five years from 2020 to 2024 and an average immediate payout of $11,000 upon ratification, according to the American Railroad Association. The group said the deal was provisional and subject to ratification by union members.
In an interview, Mr. Biden said he had struck a deal that was “fair” for both sides.
“One of the things that happens in negotiations, especially when negotiations are dragged out like this, is that you say things and do things that involve pride. So all we did was say, “Look, let’s see.” Let’s see what’s going on. You are made for labor. Their income will increase by 24% over the next five years. They worked out the health care part and worked out the holidays. From my point of view, they both sat down, were in the office today, and said, ‘Well, I finally figured it out. I was.
U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh said the two sides negotiated for more than 20 consecutive hours at the U.S. Department of Labor after reaching a tentative agreement.
“After more than 20 hours of continuous negotiations, railroad and union negotiators have reached a tentative agreement that balances the needs of workers, businesses and our economy,” Walsh said. rice field. “The Biden administration commends all parties for reaching mutually beneficial agreements in this bitter battle. It would have had a devastating effect on the family.
A railroad workers’ strike would have had far-reaching effects on the entire U.S. economy. The American Railroad Association estimates he could cost more than $2 billion a day in lost economic output due to work stoppages.
Amtrak preemptively announced on Wednesday that it would cancel all long-distance trains starting Thursday, only those with enough time to reach their destinations before a possible lockout begins after midnight on Friday. said to operate
On Thursday, Amtrak announced that it would operate on its full schedule on Friday as a result of a tentative agreement.
