3 of 12 rail unions announce tentative deal with 24% raises

By JOSH FUNK
AP Business Writer

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Three of the 12 unions negotiating with the nation’s biggest freight railroads have reached a tentative deal with will deliver 24% raises in line with what a special presidential panel of arbitrators recommended earlier this month to resolve the stalemate before a strike could happen. The tentative deal announced Monday covers more than 15,000 workers although the two biggest rail unions that represent engineers and conductors said over the weekend they still haven’t been able to reach a deal their members would accept. The railroads have until mid September to reach agreements with all their unions before federal law would allow them to go on strike but if it gets to that point, Congress is expected to step in.