[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 188 (Monday, December 5, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H8733-H8734]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  FAIR TREATMENT FOR RAILROAD WORKERS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Oregon (Mr. DeFazio) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Mr. Speaker, this will be a parable to greed and modern 
predatory capitalism.
  We used to have the most efficient, reliable freight network in the 
world. Freight was delivered safely, at a reasonable rate, and on time. 
They had a large skilled workforce reasonably compensated, and the 
railroads were all moderately profitable.
  Then came Hunter Harrison, now deceased. He thought there was 
something wrong with this. He took over CSX. There is something wrong 
here. He invented precision scheduled railroading, which is anything 
but. He slashed the workforce and started running trains that were 4 
and 5 miles long. They don't have sidings that are that long, so they 
block intersections all across the country.
  He found new ways to gouge the customers with a host of new fees and 
jacked-up rates and, as a side effect, as the agriculture, energy, and 
construction customers have all testified to the Surface Transportation 
Board, delayed deliveries, disrupted businesses, and increased costs, 
which ultimately get passed on to consumers.
  But he accomplished his goal. Profits are up. In the last decade, 
railroads bought back $230 billion worth of stock and dividends. In 
2021, it was $26 billion in dividends and buybacks and $29 billion in 
profits. The CEOs, like the now-gone Hunter Harrison, are making out 
like bandits. They all earned $16 million a year on average or more.

[[Page H8734]]

  The Wall Street jackals, well, they are just thrilled with the stock 
price. Warren Buffet was bragging on making $6 billion last quarter 
with BNSF, which has become the most abusive railroad in the system. 
They used to be the best. They were the star. I don't know what 
happened.
  Last week, we had to legislate here on the floor of the House. 
115,000 rail workers had gone 3 years without a contract. The railroads 
were intransigent. They couldn't afford pay raises. What? Oh, and no 
paid sick time. Oh, we couldn't do that.
  They testified to the Presidential Emergency Board that record 
profits were not due to ``any contributions by labor.'' I guess the 
trains run and maintain themselves.
  Despite massive layoffs and a 600 percent increase in productivity of 
the remaining workforce, I guess it is their just fabulous business 
acumen that is making all this money.
  Because they cut the workforce to the bone, they are particularly 
adamant that there can be no paid sick time--well, no sick time at all, 
in fact. They are forcing workers to come to work sick and fatigued in 
an industry where one little mistake will lose you a limb or might 
cause a catastrophic accident. There is a 60 percent increase in the 
violations of time by the railroads.
  If they gave all the workers 7 days paid leave, it would take 1 cent 
off of their profits, 1 cent per dollar of those profits.
  Last week, the House voted to lock in the tentative agreements that 
provide historic pay raises and guarantee reimbursement for work 
expenses, and they prevented a massive disruption. In addition, 221 
Members of the House voted to impose 7 days of paid sick leave--with 
only three Republicans. Pretty pathetic, guys. Pretty pathetic.
  Congress took action because we recognized who makes this country 
great, who makes it run. It is frontline workers. Without them, just 
under one-third of our country's freight would sit idle.
  It is time for the railroads to face the music. Precision scheduled 
railroading is an abject failure. Your service is atrocious. You treat 
your workers with no respect. Don't come crying to the Federal Railroad 
Administration and Congress to bail you out for your ineptitude, greed, 
and profit taking. If you can't provide your workers with paid sick 
time because you don't have enough people working, well, then, maybe 
the CEOs could take a shift in the rail yard to cover them.
  It is time for this to end. Unfortunately, it didn't last week 
because the Senate overrode us.
  I thank my staff who worked so hard on this legislation last week: 
Auke Mahar-Piersma, Andrea Wohleber, Frances Bourne, Katherine Ambrose, 
Alice Koethe, Jill Harrelson, Kathy Dedrick, and all the other fabulous 
members of my team.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to direct their remarks 
to the Chair.

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