Union threatens to strike over Union Pacific's virus protections

https://omaha.com/news/state-and-regional/union-threatens-to-strike-over-union-pacifics-virus-protections/article_46d22359-574a-54a4-90f5-402c379258bf.html

NORFOLK, Neb. (AP) — One of Union Pacific’s main unions is threatening to strike if the railroad doesn’t do more to protect its employees from the coronavirus.

The Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division union said the Omaha-based railroad needs to offer its more than 30,000 employees full pay if they have to quarantine because of exposure to the virus, and it wants U.P. to bolster safety precautions in the workplace.

“The working conditions created by UP’s COVID-19 protocols have created a work site that is immediately hazardous to the life and health of our members,” Tony Caldwell, the union’s general chairman, said in a letter to U.P. management.

Union Pacific maintains that it is taking appropriate precautions to protect workers from the virus, and it has gone to court to block the union from striking because it says the dispute should be resolved through collective bargaining. The railroad argues that a strike would unfairly harm the companies that rely on the railroad for shipping.

FULL story at link above.



One of Union Pacific’s main unions is threatening to strike if the railroad doesn’t do more to protect its employees from the coronavirus.

ASSOCIATED PRESS