Phosphorus wrote:GalaxyFlyer wrote:There’s the fact, the RR unions haven’t for decades negotiated for sick time says a lot. It’s not the Congress, nor the company’s entire doing—the unions aren’t willing to fight the battle prefers g other compensation deals. Airline pilots have had sick time for years, ALPA fought for it in contracts.
Am I correct in understanding that it has become an issue recently -- because the sick time is not available in principle, due to understaffing?
The way I read it, of course workers would prefer paid sick time off, but compensation was good enough, that folks could forego some pay, while sick, or take days from PTO pool. Because somebody was out there to pick up the slack.
Now, with operation under-staffed, their "request for PTO" (which in reality is actually "calling in sick", but cannot be called that way because contract doesn't allow it) is routinely denied. Which means people showing up sick.
Or am I reading this whole "was - is" wrong?
Not in rail business, but I think you have it right. Union contracts are all about “what will you pay for adding blank?”. If the rails unions wanted sick time, they could have had it, but it might have cost money in pay rates or vacation days (total PTO days). Well, the membership might not have ratified that WHEN crewing made taking a PTO day was possible. I suspect, lots of train crews just went in sick, just as happens elsewhere. I do know train contracts are pretty archaic, particularly on scheduling and fatigue. Industry has long had a pseudo military atomisphere from engineers I know.