Status: Rejected Nov. 21, status quo in effect until Dec. 9

The largest freight rail union rejected its agreement by a narrow margin, with 50.87% of train and engine service members represented by the contract voting it down.

SMART-TD was one of the final groups to reach a tentative agreement with railroads in late September, helping secure benefits beyond what was recommended by Biden’s presidential emergency board. 

Union president Jeremy Ferguson had previously said that the union decided to reach an agreement with railroads in September rather than risk congressional interference, which could lead to a less-than-favorable outcome for workers.

The union is still pushing to avoid a congressional showdown by reaching an agreement at the bargaining table. 

“The ball is now in the railroads’ court. Let’s see what they do. They can settle this at the bargaining table," Ferguson said. “But, the railroad executives who constantly complain about government interference and regularly bad-mouth regulators and Congress now want Congress to do the bargaining for them.”

Status: Ratified Nov. 21

Locomotive engineers, conductors and other train service employees that make up the second-largest rail union approved their agreement with 54% voting in favor. 

"With over two-thirds of eligible BLET members returning a ballot, a true majority of the membership has spoken and I want to thank them all for participating," BLET President Dennis Pierce said in a statement.

The union had been careful not to push members to vote one way or the other on the agreement. The spread of misinformation made the vote more contentious, and BLET issued a statement in early October to counteract claims made on social media that the union would somehow force members to accept an agreement.

“Anyone suggesting that our Union would accept binding arbitration against our membership’s wishes is lying to you,” Pierce said at the time.

Status: Rejected Nov. 14, "cooling off" period ends Dec. 9

Boilermakers will continue to negotiate with carriers after union members voted down their agreement.  The union, which represents about 300 workers, did not provide details on the vote breakdown.

Status: Ratified

Locomotive machinists, track equipment mechanics and facility maintenance personnel ratified their agreement Nov. 5, with 52% of voting members approving the contract.

IAM District 19 initially rejected its agreement in mid-September, out of respect for the two largest rail unions, which were negotiating for additional benefits beyond those recommended by the presidential emergency board. The group, which represents around 5,000 workers, reached a new agreement after carriers agreed to provide an additional day of personal leave, among other benefits. 

IAM District 19 said in a statement the vote came after union leaders “worked day and night to communicate the agreement’s benefits and what would happen if it was rejected.” The IAM Rail Division recommended all three of its unions ratify the agreement in an August letter to members.

Paid sick leave continues to be an issue among members, with the union noting the agreement was not overwhelmingly ratified. 

“We look forward to sitting down with the carriers to find a solution to the overtime policies in our industry,” IAM District 19 said in a statement.

Status: Rejected Oct. 26, "status quo" in effect until Dec. 9

Workers who install and maintain signal systems rejected their agreement Oct. 26, with just over 60% voting against the contract.

President Michael Baldwin said in a statement that carriers and Biden’s presidential emergency board failed to provide workers with “the basic right of paid time off for illness.”

The union, which represents more than 6,000 workers, will reengage railroads to continue negotiations. 

“The highest offices at each Carrier, as well as their stockholders, seem to forget that the rank-and-file of their employees continued to perform their job each day through an unprecedented pandemic, while the executives worked from home to keep their families safe,” said Baldwin.

Status: Ratified Oct. 13

The union, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union, ratified its agreement with nearly 59% of members casting ballots voting in favor. 

NCFO President Dean Devita noted many members are still disappointed with the terms of the agreement, and that the union supports paid sick leave. 

“Quality of life issues after the COVID-19 crisis is extremely important, sick leave and time off to visit Medical Practitioners are more important today than it was 48 years ago,” Devita said in a statement. “Although the agreement is finalized, the NCFO will continue to work on this and many other issues.”

Status: Ratified Oct. 12

The division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers representing mechanical workers and engineers voted to ratify its agreement by a 54% margin.

“It was up to our members to decide whether to accept this agreement, and the members have made the decision to ratify a contract with the highest wage increases we have ever seen in national freight rail bargaining,” said Joseph Sellers, Jr., general president of SMART. “However, we hear the concerns of our members who may be disappointed in the outcome of this vote, and I promise that we will never stop fighting to ensure that they receive the wages, benefits and working conditions that they deserve for keeping the American economy running.”

Status: Rejected Oct. 10, "status quo" in effect until Nov. 19

The third-largest rail union, which represents more than 20,000 workers who build and maintain tracks, rejected its contract on Oct. 10 over the agreement’s failure to include paid sick days.

The BMWED reengaged railroads following the vote to ask for seven days paid sick leave in accordance with a 2015 executive order for federal contractors. The National Carriers’ Conference Committee, which represents carriers in bargaining, rejected the proposal, saying the Biden administration’s presidential emergency board already rejected calls for paid sick leave.

Both parties have agreed to a “status quo” period until 5 days after Congress returns for session, during which time no work stoppages can occur. The BMWED is working to continue negotiations with railroads in-person. 

“If the carriers want to end this dispute, provide the standard 56-hours of paid sick time off that is afforded to all federal government contractors,” the union said in a statement Oct. 27.

Status: Ratified Oct. 4

Train dispatchers at major Class I carriers and shortline railroads ratified their agreement with 64% of those who cast ballots voting in favor.

The ATDA, which represents a little more than 1,300 workers covered by the agreement, said voting members are part of BNSF, CSX, Kansas City Southern, Norfolk Southern and Conrail, in addition to the shortlines Belt Railway of Chicago, Indiana Harbor Belt, Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis and Wisconsin Central.

Union Pacific's train dispatchers are non-unionized and not covered by the agreement, a spokesperson for the railroad confirmed.

Status: Ratified Sept. 28

The 4,000 electricians represented by the IBEW voted to ratify their agreement, though President Lonnie Stephenson noted the contract didn’t include “everything we wanted.”

The average base pay for an IBEW member will go from $33.09 to $41.02 per hour under the 5-year term of the contract, according to a summary of the agreement.

“It’s been a long and tough process, but we’ve finally reached an agreement that achieves more than 70% of what we were asking for, including historic wage gains for our railroad members,” said IBEW International President Lonnie Stephenson in a statement.

Status: Ratified Sept. 14

The union, a division of the Transportation Communications International Union and part of the IAM Rail Division, had an identical agreement to TCU. Roughly 58% of carmen covered by the agreement participated, up from 28% in 2018.

General President Richard Johnson said in a letter to members before the vote that the agreement provided “record-setting, historical wage increases” in addition to health insurance improvements.

Status: Ratified Sept. 14

TCU, which represents clerical employees, said in a statement announcing ratification that 49% of members covered by the agreement turned out to vote, up from 34% in 2018. 

National President Arthur Maratea said in a letter to members before the vote that clerical employees do not have the same concerns as other unions around paid sick leave and scheduling. Most TCU agreements already have paid sick leave, and the majority of assignments have defined schedules with a fixed work location.

TCU members working with CSX Intermodal voted to ratify their contract Oct. 26. The agreement includes increases to hourly premiums and also addresses pay disparities, a release said.

TCU is one of three unions that make up the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Rail Division.