Biden signs bill to avert rail strike and says fight for paid sick leave ‘isn’t over’

President touted the “historic” 24 per cent wage increase the deal will provide workers over the next five years

U.S. President Joe Biden arrives prior to signing railroad legislation into law, providing a resoluton to avert a nationwide rail shutdown, during a signing ceremony in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., December 2, 2022. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque (REUTERS)

President Joe Biden on Friday said the US economy remains strong and is still growing as he signed legislation to avert a strike by railroad workers that would have crippled American supply chains during the critical holiday season.

Speaking from the Roosevelt Room in the White House, Mr Biden acknowledged that the deal the bill he signed forces railroad unions to adopt a labour agreement that does not include the paid sick leave benefits that were the driving force behind four of the 12 unions’ decision to reject a deal his administration brokered in September.

The president touted the “historic” 24 per cent wage increase the deal will provide workers over the next five years, as well as the “improved working conditions and peace of mind around their health care” guaranteed in the labour agreement. He also said the fight for the rail workers’ paid sick leave “isn’t over” and stressed that “every worker in America” deserves to have paid time off when ill.

“I've supported paid sick leave for a long time. I'm going to continue that fight till we succeed,” he said.

He also acknowledged that the decision to ask Congress to step in to avert the strike was a difficult one and that presented a “tough vote” for both Republicans and Democrats.

“But it was the right thing to do at the moment to save jobs to protect millions of working families from harm and disruption and to keep supply chain stable around the holidays. And to continue the progress we've made,” he said.

Mr Biden’s action to keep US railroads running came just after the Bureau of Labor Statistics said the US economy added 263,000 new jobs in the month of November, beating the expectations of most analysts and providing his administration with more evidence that the American economic picture remains rosy as he continues to contemplate whether to run for a second term as president in 2024.

The president also touted recent decreases in gasoline prices and noted that his Republican critics have stopped citing the price of fuel as evidence of how his economic policies are harming the country.

“They're down more than $1.50 a gallon since the summer and they continue to fall and our economy continues to grow,” he said.