Minnesota rail workers join nationwide effort in rallying for sick days
MINNEAPOLIS – Dozens of Minnesota rail workers are rallying Tuesday, joining similar rallies around the country.
They hope President Joe Biden will sign an executive order to provide them paid sick days.
The demand was at the heart of negotiations the past few months between the workers' unions and freight rail companies. The negotiations nearly led to a strike, until Congress stepped in to stop it.
Phil Qually is the former state director of the United Transportation Union.
"With sore knees, with crew fatigue, missing family events and not having enough men and women to even mark off for illness," Qually said.
On Friday, 70 Democrats in Congress signed a letter asking Biden to give workers sick days, saying it poses a public safety risk to make them do their jobs when they're sick.
They also pointed out that workers who do call in sick have to go without pay, and in some cases are penalized or even fired.
The White House has not yet commented on the letter.
