Arlington, VA – Apr. 25, 2022 – The National Carriers’ Conference Committee (NCCC), which represents the nation’s freight rail carriers in national collective bargaining, announced today that most rail labor organizations in national handling have declined the railroads’ proposal to provide advance payments of up to $600 per month to employees while negotiations for new national collective bargaining agreements continue. The NCCC will hold open the proposal, which would quickly put money in employees’ pockets, for further consideration by the unions.

Rail employees work hard and deserve compensation increases that keep them among the best paid employees in the nation. The railroads want to reach new national agreements with the labor organizations that provide those increases, but the issues on the national bargaining table are complex and there is more work to be done before complete agreements can be finalized. The railroads’ advance payment proposal is intended to help mitigate the impact of COVID-related delays in the bargaining process on the employee group while the parties continue to discuss the many important issues that remain open in negotiations.

Even if the parties reach tentative agreements promptly, those agreements generally must be ratified by the union membership before they become effective and payments can be made. It can take a number of months for the ratification process to be completed and for payments due under the agreements to be calculated and processed. As a result, the railroads believe that regardless of when tentative agreements are reached, the monthly advance payment proposal is the best way to put money in employees’ hands now.

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