For first time in 61 years, freight rails split on union strategy [Video]

For the first time in 61 years, there is a split between the class 1 freight railroads in how they are pursuing the next round of national talks with labor unions that begins on Friday. Formal national labor agreement negotiations with the rail worker unions, called, “national handling,” have been conducted as a joint effort among most major rails, but freight companies including Union Pacific and CSX have made the decision to negotiate on their own with rank-and-file chapters at the local level first.

“Union Pacific is not participating in the multi-employer bargaining coalition for the 2025 bargaining round,” said a company spokesperson. It is instead focused on what the spokesperson called hyper-local negotiations, focused on local service, operating efficiency, and how to serve customers.

Canadian Pacific Kansas City is not a party to the national negotiations for wages and rules.