OMAHA, Neb.—A second railroad union rejected its deal with the major U.S. freight railroads on Wednesday, adding to concerns about the possibility of a strike next month that could cripple the economy.
The Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen said nearly 61 percent of the workers who voted opposed the five-year contract even though it included 24 percent raises and $5,000 in bonuses. It is the second rail union to reject a deal this month.
Union President Michael Baldwin said the “lack of good-faith bargaining” by the railroads and the recommendations of a board of arbitrators that President Joe Biden appointed this summer denied workers the “basic right of paid time off for illness.”…