This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
12/19/2024
Railroad unemployment and sickness benefits will be fully restored for the more than 200,000 railroad workers and their families as the Railroad Employee Equity and Fairness (REEF) Act heads to President Biden’s desk for his signature, the Association of American Railroads announced yesterday.
Included in the National Defense Authorization Act, the legislation will remove those railroader benefits from budget sequestration and restore nearly $100 in monthly benefits to railroad employees, AAR officials said in a press release.
Unlike other unemployment insurance benefits, railroad unemployment insurance is fully funded through payroll taxes and surcharges paid by the railroads and automatically adjusted to meet demand, ensuring the funds remain solvent. As a result, sequestration cuts to railroad unemployment benefits have never reduced the federal deficit because no taxpayer money funds the program, according to the AAR. Without the REEF Act, railroad workers would have faced additional annual cuts to unemployment insurance and supplemental sickness benefits through at least 2030.
"Passing the REEF Act is a big win for railroaders around the country and their families,” said AAR President and CEO Ian Jefferies. "Our employees deserve the certainty that their families will have the funds they need in the future, which is why we were in lockstep with our labor partners to eliminate these harmful, arbitrary cuts and provide the stability and equity our workforce needs."
Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD) President Greg Regan added: “As America’s largest transportation labor federation, we've seen firsthand how unemployment and sickness benefits are a lifeline for workers in times of need. After more than a decade of waiting, passenger- and freight-rail workers will finally receive the full value of the benefits they have earned"
Jefferies and Regan thanked U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), who led the bipartisan effort to pass the legislation.