Media outlets reported that the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the third largest railworkers’ union in the country, rejected earlier this week a tentative labor contract brokered between the rail carriers and workers’ union representatives. This marks the first instance a union declined a deal help brokered by the Biden administration.

Negotiations have dragged out and an impending strike nearly brought the railroads to a screeching halt last month, which would have a tremendous impact on the ag input industry. Biden and Labor Secretary Marty Walsh stepped in to help strike a deal. Railworkers held out on issues pertaining to unpaid leave and on-call policies. The deal would have resulted in a 24 percent wage increase for workers over a 5-year period.