US Chamber of Commerce Says National Rail Strike Would Be 'Economic Disaster'

© AFP 2023 / ED JONESA general view shows the Avelia Liberty, a high-speed train built for US rail operator Amtrak by French manufacturer Alstom, during a media preview at the William H. Gray III 30th Street Station in Philadelphia on May 23, 2022. (
A general view shows the Avelia Liberty, a high-speed train built for US rail operator Amtrak by French manufacturer Alstom, during a media preview at the William H. Gray III 30th Street Station in Philadelphia on May 23, 2022. ( - Sputnik International, 1920, 12.09.2022
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WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – The US Chamber of Commerce warned on Monday that a potential rail strike would lead to "economic disaster," calling on Congress to be prepared to intervene.

"A national rail strike would be an economic disaster – freezing the flow of goods, emptying shelves, shuttering workplaces, and raising prices for families and businesses alike, but that is exactly what is likely to happen in less than four days," the chamber stated in a release.

It added that avoiding a strike would require one of three scenarios: "the remaining unions who have not agreed to a deal need to join the ones who have; an agreement to extend the current ‘cooling off’ period must be reached; or Congress intervenes, as it has in prior situations."
The chamber said it had sent a letter to Congress urging it to impose the recommendations of the Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) if all 12 unions did not reach a voluntary agreement with the six freight railroads by the end of the "cooling off" period on Friday.
The PEB is a group of independent experts appointed by US President Biden to develop recommendations to help both sides reach a voluntary agreement. The chamber argued that the PEB’s recommendations constituted "a viable framework for compromise" and absent a voluntary agreement, "the next best outcome" was congressional intervention.
The chamber noted there was historical precedent for such intervention, as Congress had mandated the parties to accept the recommendations of previous PEBs in 1982 and 1986.
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