The Wall Street Journal-20080119-Amtrak and Unions Reach Tentative Labor Agreement
Return to: The_Wall_Street_Journal-20080119
Amtrak and Unions Reach Tentative Labor Agreement
Amtrak and its labor unions reached a tentative agreement on new contracts, avoiding a crippling strike later this month but leaving the passenger railroad with a potential $150 million budget shortfall next year.
Friday, Amtrak supporters in Congress said they will help the company pay for the settlement.
The agreement, if approved by members of the eight unions, promises to resolve a dispute over new contracts for about 10,000 Amtrak workers going back about eight years. A panel appointed by President Bush recommended last month that the parties reach an agreement on terms generally favorable to the unions.
Amtrak declined to comment on the tentative settlement. W. Dan Pickett, president of the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, one of the unions involved in the negotiations, said the agreement "just about exactly" follows the recommendations made by the panel. He added that he is optimistic that union members will accept the agreement and avert a strike.
The panel called for Amtrak to boost wages about 35% and pay full retroactive pay to the year 2000 and turned down the railroad's request for significant changes in work rules. Amtrak said in recent days that it was concerned that it couldn't afford such a settlement unless it made significant cost cuts or sought additional funds from Congress.
Congress lately has shown an increased willingness to provide support for Amtrak, with many lawmakers seeing rail-passenger alternatives as a part of the solution to higher energy prices, traffic gridlock and global warming.
In a statement Friday, congressman James Oberstar, a Democrat from Minnesota and longtime Amtrak supporter, said he will work with the Senate "to ensure Amtrak has the resources it needs to meet its financial obligations under the new contract." Congress currently provides funding of about $1.3 billion a year to Amtrak.
