Amtrak Unions Seen Rejecting Arbitration
According to Business Week:
Labor unions are expected to reject an offer this week for binding arbitration with Amtrak, starting a countdown toward a possible strike early next year.
About 10,000 Amtrak employees represented by nine unions have been working nearly eight years under an expired contract. On Thursday, the National Mediation Board released the unions and the railroad from mediation, which had failed to bear fruit, and offered the parties the option of binding arbitration.
Under the Railway Labor Act, designed to keep the rail and aviation industries moving, employees must continue working under expired contracts and cannot strike until they are released from mediation.
But even after the release, there are still several steps before a strike becomes possible. Congress could also intervene to impose a contract and end the standoff.
Amtrak has never had a strike in its 36-year history.
Union leaders have long expressed frustration that they were being held in mediation with no results...click to continue.
