IBEW ratifies tentative labor agreement with U.S. freight railroads

Another railroad labor union has ratified an agreement with United States freight railroads, following a September 15 deal—subject to complete ratification by all 12 railroad labor unions—between United States freight railroad carriers and railroad labor unions, the National Carriers’ Conference Committee (NCCC), an organization representing the nation’s freight railroads in national collective bargaining, said yesterday.

NCCC said that membership of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers ratified the recent tentative agreement between IBEW and U.S. freight railroads. And it added that IBEW represents the third union to “ratify an agreement resolving the current national bargaining round,” adding that “[t]entative agreements with nine other labor organizations remain subject to ratification.”

Earlier this week, NCCC announced that the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) reached a tentative agreement with the railroads.

And NCCC added that all 12 railroad labor unions in the national bargaining round have now ratified or are in the process of ratifying new collective bargaining agreements.  

As previously reported, those agreements followed the announcement of the recent appointment of the Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) by President Biden, which is focused on resolving this ongoing labor dispute. The August 16 release of the PEB’s recommendations, which include a 24% wage increase over the five-year period from 2020 through 2024, coupled with a 14.1% wage increase that is effective immediately, as well as five annual $1,000 lump sum payments, with a portion of the lump sum payments are retroactive and will be paid out promptly upon ratification of the agreements by the unions’ membership, according to the National Carriers Conference Committee (NCCC), an organization representing the nation’s freight railroads in national collective bargaining.

To read more about the railroad labor negotiations, please click here.