PanamaTimes

Friday, Jul 11, 2025

White House urgently discussing contingency plans amid rail shutdown threat

White House urgently discussing contingency plans amid rail shutdown threat

The White House is urgently discussing contingency plans as the threat of a rail shut down looms, with agencies across the federal government working through how they could potentially use federal authority to keep critical supply chains operational as labor talks continue to sit at an impasse.
The work has ramped up in recent days as officials have grown increasingly concerned about a labor strike if freight-rail labor negotiations fail to produce an agreement ahead of Friday’s deadline. And President Joe Biden personally called rail unions and companies on Monday while visiting Boston in an attempt to avert a rail shut down, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters.

While officials have been closely watching the developments – and have gotten directly involved in an effort to find a resolution – for several weeks, accelerated efforts to plan for a worst case scenario underscore the stakes of an outcome that would lead to massive supply chain disruptions, and dual-pronged political and economic risk.

“The White House is working with other modes of transportation (including shippers, truckers, air freight) to see how they can step in and keep goods moving, in case of a rail shutdown,” a White House official told CNN on Tuesday.

The official added that the administration “has also been working with relevant agencies to assess what supply chains and commodities are most likely to face severe disruptions, and the emergency authorities available to keep goods moving.”

About 60,000 union members who work for the railroad are set to go on strike, including the engineers and conductors who make up the two-person crews on each train. Even though 45,000 other union members belong to unions that have reached tentative deals with the railroads, a strike by engineers and conductors would bring the freight rail system, which carries nearly 30% of the nation’s freight, to a grinding halt.

Stakeholders are already warning that the situation is dire, the US Chamber of Commerce detailing some of the urgent issues in a letter to congressional leadership on Monday.

“A shutdown of the nation’s rail service would have enormous national consequences,” chamber executive vice president and chief policy officer Neil L. Bradley said in the letter.

He continued, “It would lead to perishable foods such dairy, fruits, and vegetables spoiling at their points of origin, would halt Amtrak service for approximately 12.2 million daily riders in 46 states, would disrupt materials and goods being delivered to factories and ports, and would inhibit the transport of heating fuel and other important fuels and chemicals. These are only a few examples of the damage of a rail shutdown.”

Biden continues to receive regular updates on the high-stakes negotiations, including briefings on the matter Monday evening and Tuesday morning. Senior-level engagements were expected to continue Tuesday. There are conversations with industry leaders and also “multiple interagency meetings” happening daily with the Departments of Transportation, Defense, Agriculture, Health and Human Services, and Energy, as well as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the official said, with efforts toward “identifying the sectors and the goods that will be most immediately and significantly impacted by a rail stoppage.”

One area of key concern is hazardous materials carried by rail.

“We are paying particular attention to hazardous materials carried by rail, to protect the safety of workers and communities and to support the continued distribution of vital hazardous materials that depend on rail transport, such as chlorine for water treatment plants,” said the official, who added that “all tools are on the table and will be deployed as appropriate.”

While concern about a strike has heightened at the White House in recent days, the administration remains hopeful that the matter will be resolved. The President does not have the authority to head off a strike, but Congress can still act to prevent a work stoppage.

“We hope this planning and preparation will prove unnecessary and that negotiating parties will agree to a resolution and not allow American workers, families, and businesses to be hurt by a rail stoppage. We have been clear in all our communications with the negotiating parties that a shutdown is unacceptable and will hurt American workers, families, and businesses, and they must take action to avert it,” the official said.
Newsletter

Related Articles

PanamaTimes
0:00
0:00
Close
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
OpenAI Secures Multimillion-Dollar AI Contracts with Pentagon, India, and Grab
Brazilian Congress Rejects Lula's Proposed Tax Increase on Financial Transactions
Landslide in Bello, Colombia, Results in Multiple Casualties
Papa Johns pizza surge near the Pentagon tipped off social media before Trump's decisive Iran strike
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
Minnesota Lawmaker Melissa Hortman and Husband Killed in Targeted Attack; Senator John Hoffman and Wife Injured
Wreck of $17 Billion San José Galleon Identified Off Colombia After 300 Years
Sole Survivor of Air India Crash Recounts Escape
Coinbase CEO Warns Bitcoin Could Supplant US Dollar Amid Mounting National Debt
UK and EU Reach Agreement on Gibraltar's Schengen Integration
Israeli Finance Minister Imposes Banking Penalties on Palestinians
U.S. Inflation Rises to 2.4% in May Amid Trade Tensions
Trump's Policies Prompt Decline in Chinese Student Enrollment in U.S.
Global Oceans Near Record Temperatures as CO₂ Levels Climb
Trump Announces U.S.-China Trade Deal Covering Rare Earths
Smuggled U.S. Fuel Funds Mexican Cartels Amid Crackdown
Protests Erupt in Los Angeles with Symbolic Flag Burning
Trump Administration Issues New Travel Ban Targeting 12 Countries
Man Group Mandates Full-Time Office Return for Quantitative Analysts
JPMorgan Warns Analysts Against Accepting Future-Dated Job Offers
Builder.ai Faces Legal Scrutiny Amid Financial Misreporting Allegations
Japan Grapples with Rice Shortage Amid Soaring Prices
Goldman Sachs Reduces Risk Exposure Amid Market Volatility
HSBC Chairman Mark Tucker to Return to AIA as Non-Executive Chair
Israel Confirms Arming Gaza Clan to Counter Hamas Influence
Judge Blocks Trump's Ban on International Students at Harvard
Trump Proposes Travel Ban on 'Uncontrolled' Countries
Panama Port Owner Balances US-China Pressures
Trump Administration Accused of Obstructing Deportation Cases
Trump’s China Strategy Remains a Geopolitical Puzzle
Eurozone Inflation Falls Below ECB Target to 1.9%
Call for a New Chapter in Globalisation Emerges
Blackstone and Rivals Diverge on Private Equity Strategy
Mayor’s Security Officer Implicated | Shocking New Details Emerge in NYC Kidnapping Case
Bangkok Ranked World's Top City for Remote Work in 2025
Denmark Increases Retirement Age to 70, Setting a European Precedent
Netanyahu Accuses Western Leaders of 'Emboldening Hamas'
Escalating Trade Tensions and Market Reactions
OnlyFans Reportedly in Talks for $8 Billion Sale
JBS Gains Shareholder Approval for U.S. Stock Listing
Booz Allen Hamilton to Cut 2,500 Jobs Amid Federal Spending Reductions
Trump Signs Executive Orders to Accelerate Nuclear Energy Development
Harvard Temporarily Blocks Trump Administration's International Student Ban
Nippon Steel Forms Partnership with U.S. Steel, Headquarters to Remain in Pittsburgh
Trump Expands Tariff Threats to Apple and Samsung Devices
Oracle and OpenAI Plan $40 Billion Nvidia Chip Purchase for AI Data Center
×