In September, President Biden called his administration’s work with railroad companies and a dozen unions to avert a nationwide rail strike a “win for America.” That supposedly winning deal unraveled last week when America’s largest rail union voted to reject the deal. And now, after Biden and the White House told contradicting tales about how involved the president was in the latest attempt to negotiate a deal, he’s thrown in the towel and admitted defeat in his efforts that saw him ultimately botch another attempt at leadership.
In a statement on Monday evening, President Biden announced that he was “calling on Congress to pass legislation immediately to adopt the Tentative Agreement between railroad workers and operators – without any modifications or delay – to avert a potentially crippling national rail shutdown.”
The tentative agreement Biden mentioned is the one he took a victory lap for, but that members of the nation’s largest rail union — along with a few additional smaller unions — voted to reject. That means that Biden is calling on Congress to enforce the agreement he spearheaded, despite the fact that union workers themselves don’t want the deal in a move that significantly undermines the president’s claims of supporting unions over the companies that employ workers.
Biden said he was making the move based on the recommendations and advice from his cabinet — specifically his Secretaries of Transportation, Agriculture, and Labor — because they saw “that there is no path to resolve the dispute at the bargaining table.” So much for Democrats’ commitment to supporting collective bargaining, huh?
Still, Biden claimed in his statement that he remains “a proud pro-labor president” and said he is “reluctant to override the ratification procedures and the views of those who voted against the agreement.” But to Biden, his politically opportunistic rhetoric supporting unions was trumped by his desire to save himself from bearing the blame for costing the U.S. economy $2 billion per day and bringing a major mode of transportation to a halt.
obiden has done nothing for Unions during his entire career, but they keep backing him. SMH Local Union 313 loves him and thinks he’s the greatest thing since sliced bread. SMH again. As a retired Union member, I am proud to have voted for Trump twice and will do it again every chance I get.
Biden Impeachment SOON !!!
As a retired UNION member what did I get royally screwed. Unions claim better pay raises and benefits but when you figure it up you lose money, since what you get in pay and benefit increases the cost of these increases get you maybe $10 per pay if you are lucky, since the UNIONS increase their dues.
4:18, if you think the UNION was screwing you why did you stay long enough to retire? Now let’s talk about your retirement payment from the UNION that many corporations don’t provide.