American railway and port workers are preparing for a possible strike. If it happens, it could have huge, widespread economic and supply chain implications for the nation.
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Railway and Port Unions in Negotiations
Two huge labor disputes, in the railways and at the ports, threaten to re-tangle supply chains in the United States. A shutdown of the nation's rail system could cost $2 billion a day.
Over the weekend, negotiations continued between the country's largest freight railroad companies, including Berkshire Hathaway's BNSF, Union Pacific and CSX, and the majority of the unions representing around 115,000 workers. They're racing to meet a Friday deadline, when a cooling off period runs out, and workers could strike.
A labor contract for port workers on the West Coast expired in June, leaving open the possibility of a strike. Negotiations continue with the union for port workers.
(Axios)
Union Pacific
About 60,000 union members who work for Union Pacific are set to go on strike. Even though 45,000 other union members belong to unions that have reached tentative deals with the railroads, a strike by engineers and conductors would bring the freight rail system, which carries nearly 30 percent of the nation's freight, to a grinding halt.
A prolonged strike could mean some empty shelves in stores, temporary closures at factories that don't have the parts they need to operate, and...
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