From The Government/Here To Help

(From The Government/Here To Help)

There are times when something should be allowed to take its course. That an intervention at some time or another interrupts a process that it would otherwise have been better if it had been completed. The best case of this is perhaps the inability to prevent a Second World War in the aftermath of the First. Everything that sent armies marching in 1914 were still present in 1939 and in than again 1941.

Now, it is happening again as Uncle Sam is seeing fit to intervene in the railway strike with its own issues still outstanding. No resolving these contentions now just delayed the inevitable, namely that, without a final resolution, the same complaints or rail workers will manifest at some future date. That being said, a railroad strike is not the average labor dispute as broader consequences can have an impact.

But these special circumstances notwithstanding, any negotiations for a new railroad contract would still be best when the discussions are limited to the principals. That way, there is less an opportunity for a mis-understanding, to be able to identify a path forward. But politicians needed to have something on paper and before the onset of Christmas.

There can be a back-lash when mandates get passed from above and the unions and management would have preferred to settle matters internally. In fact, the reaction to the government imposed settlement, the Senate voting 80-15 in favor of the President's "compromise." There has even been warnings that while Biden's is a pro-union Administration, it has not been allowing the railway union the latitude to decide on a work stoppage.

Collective bargaining can be a useful right. But like most such "rights," it can be taken to extremes as is the case here. When too many third parties attempt to intervene in order to secure a pre-determined outcome, independent of the positions of the principals, one can all but guarantee this will not be the end of discussion.