Amtrak Strike Delayed; Freight Shutdown Set

Rail commuters from coast to coast received a reprieve early today when three labor unions agreed to postpone a threatened national strike against Amtrak and continue bargaining for at least 48 hours.

But the nation’s 40 major freight railroads ordered a shutdown after the Machinists’ union called a selective strike against CSX, the former Chesapeake and Ohio line.

Edwin L. Harper, president of the Assn. of American Railroads, announced that the freight carriers would retaliate against the CSX strike by staging a “safe and orderly shutdown” starting early today.

“Because of the seamless nature of the nation’s freight rail system, a strike that begins in one region of the country affects service in the entire nation,” Harper said in a statement after the Machinists posted pickets in seven key locations on CSX, a major carrier in the Eastern half of the nation.

The shutdown would include Conrail, the government-owned freight hauler in the Northeast, because it is involved in the negotiations with the Machinists.

The developments came after President Bush had urged Congress to intervene immediately in the event of a major rail shutdown to prevent damage to the slowly recovering economy and avert hardship for hundreds of thousands of commuters.

“Should a strike occur, Congress has an obligation to move fast to protect the American people,” the President said Tuesday.

Earlier, three rail labor unions said they would defer any walkout against Amtrak because of progress in negotiations with the passenger line. A new strike deadline of 12:01 a.m. EDT Friday was set while bargaining continued on a new contract for the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees, the Machinists and the Locomotive Engineers.

“We’re holding off for at least 48 hours,” said Jed Dodd, chief negotiator for the railroad’s maintenance workers.

Asked what commuters should do this morning, Dodd said, “Ride Amtrak.” He said “there should not be much disruption” of service.

In a midnight news conference, Dodd raised hopes of a settlement with Amtrak on the basis of an improved wage offer from the government-supported passenger railroad.

“We’re having some serious dialogue and it’s possible to come to an agreement (with Amtrak),” Dodd said.

Earlier, Amtrak reached agreement with several smaller unions on new labor contracts. While the terms were not disclosed, Dodd said the settlements gave momentum to the bargaining with the remaining unions.

“Until we have explored all avenues, there’s no point in pulling our people out on strike,” Dodd said.

While rail labor unions found some sympathy on Capitol Hill for their arguments against government intervention in the dispute, few lawmakers seemed to doubt they would have to act within a day or two to end any major railroad strike.

Bush said earlier that to be effective Congress would have to pass legislation in less than 24 hours of a strike. It acted with such speed in April, 1991, when striking railroad unions halted train service across the nation.

“It ought to end the day it begins,” the President said, without recommending a solution to the impasse.

In preparation for a strike, Amtrak began shutting down its operations hours in advance of the deadline, while freight shippers who depend on railroads scrambled to make alternate arrangements.

The key areas of dispute in the rail negotiations were wages, job security and working conditions.

Bush had named special emergency boards to investigate the various rail union disputes and make recommendations but the unions rejected proposed settlements in all instances.

“We’ve simply done everything we can,” said Judy Smith, a White House spokeswoman.

Meantime, Amtrak’s parent company, the National Passenger Rail Corp. announced that it had reached agreement with two smaller unions--the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the American Train Dispatchers Assn. They represent 1,500 and 160 workers, respectively, but the settlements are not likely to influence the major negotiations with larger labor organizations.

Sen. Howard M. Metzenbaum (D-Ohio) was one of the few lawmakers who spoke up for the rail union position during a brief Senate debate on the threat of a strike.

Some of the union members, he said, have been working for four years without pay increases. Maintenance of way employees, who repair track, are being asked to forgo free room and board in railroad dormitory cars and accept instead a $35 daily payment that they say would not be enough to cover the costs of food and shelter in private accommodations.

Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah), however, expressed the dominant sentiment when he said: “If we have this strike, it’s going to be crippling to our economy.”

A strike would have its biggest immediate impact on rail commuters in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and other major cities. Even non-struck carriers would be affected if they used Amtrak-owned terminals in New York and Chicago.

Thousands of commuters nationwide would have their trains canceled outright and hundreds of thousands more would be inconvenienced if a strike shut down Amtrak operations.

More than 5,000 Southern California commuters already were affected by Amtrak’s preemptive decision to temporarily cancel all services, including the San Diegan intercity trains that operate as an informal commuter service linking San Diego and Orange counties with Los Angeles.

In New York, where about 40% of the country’s commuter train services are concentrated, a walkout would disrupt but not cancel services. Amtrak owns Manhattan’s primary commuter-rail terminal, Pennsylvania Station, and all of the tracks and tunnels leading to it. They have been shut down in anticipation of a strike against Amtrak.

As a result, the nation’s largest commuter line, the Long Island Rail Road, was arranging to deposit its 130,000 passengers at six subway stations in Queens and Brooklyn, said spokeswoman Susan McGowan. Riders would then complete their commutes on public transit. Subways are unaffected by the threatened strike.

In the event of a strike, about 73,000 riders on four of Metropolitan Rail Chicago’s 11 commuter-rail lines were to have been deposited short of their usual destination, Chicago’s Union Station, because that facility is owned and run by Amtrak. Spokesman Tom Miller said that riders on those lines would be asked to transfer to elevated subway-style trains or Chicago Transit Authority buses outside of the central city Loop.

Chicago’s seven other commuter rail lines, which carry about 60,000 riders a day, would not be affected by a strike. They arrive at the Chicago Passenger Terminal or at the La Salle Street Station, which are not run by Amtrak.

Four of 12 commuter train lines operated by New Jersey Transit rely on Amtrak-owned tracks and would be shut down, affecting about 45,000 riders who shuttle between northern New Jersey suburbs and New York City, spokesman Armando Arristia said. Charter buses were being marshaled to replace the trains, he said, but they would not be able to handle all displaced riders.

Meanwhile, Amtrak held to its promise to cancel all of its own long-distance and intrastate services in anticipation of a strike, to avoid stranding any of its 60,000 daily riders short of their destinations.

Amtrak stopped accepting reservations and set up special reduced fares on United Air Lines, Delta Air Lines and USAir. Greyhound bus lines offered to honor Amtrak tickets. A lengthy shutdown, of course, would interfere with auto, steel and other manufacturing industries that rely on railroads to deliver supplies and carry away finished products. Railroads carry about 40% of the nation’s freight.

Some of the nation’s key industries rely heavily on the railroads to receive supplies and ship finished goods. Railroads carry more than 50% of the nation’s chemical products, 60% of coal production and about 45% of food company shipments.

In addition, about 67% of auto industry business is conducted by rail. The auto industry uses railroads to move parts to assembly lines and to ship finished vehicles to their destinations, according to railroad officials.

At General Motors Corp., about a quarter of manufacturing and assembly operations would be affected in some way within 24 hours of a rail strike. Within 72 hours, that number would grow to 50%, spokeswoman Toni Simonetti said.

The strike also could cause problems at the nation’s ports. At the Port of Los Angeles, for example, most of the millions of containers that arrive by cargo ship are taken off the dock by rail. The docks and storage yards at the port can become clogged with cargo if rail service is interrupted, said Jeff Leong, a spokesman for the Port of Los Angeles.

Times staff writers Mark A. Stein and Jesus Sanchez in Los Angeles contributed to this story.