The Week in Business: Rail Strike Averted

What’s Up? (Sept. 11-17)

Rail Workers Win Some Demands

With less than 24 hours until a critical deadline for negotiations, the country’s largest rail companies reached a tentative agreement with labor unions representing some 115,000 workers early Thursday morning. An impasse in bargaining brought workers to the brink of a strike that could have started as soon as Friday, with far-reaching consequences for the already mangled supply chain as well as inflation and Amtrak service. The main sticking points had to do with scheduling and sick time: Labor groups were asking that workers be allowed to see a doctor or attend to a personal matter without risking disciplinary action. White House officials got involved in trying to bring the two sides to a deal both because of the economic impact of a work stoppage and the political impact on President Biden and his party before the midterm elections. Martin J. Walsh, the Labor secretary, helped broker the tentative agreement, which gives workers one additional paid day off and the ability to go to medical appointments without penalty, labor unions said. It still needs to be ratified by union members — a process that could take weeks — but workers have agreed not to strike while the votes are tallied.

A ‘Merge,’ Not a Merger, Goes Through

While you were sleeping, a major shift to the popular cryptocurrency platform Ethereum took place overnight Wednesday. For nearly a decade, engineers had been working to complete what’s known as the Merge, a software upgrade intended to make Ethereum, which supports thousands of crypto projects, more climate friendly. Ethereum, like many other blockchains, relied on a verification process called proof of work, which requires high-powered computers to complete complex puzzles to verify crypto transactions, using an immense amount of energy. “Proof of stake,” which Ethereum will now use, asks participants to “stake” some of their crypto savings in a pool and enters them in a lottery. When a crypto transaction requires approval, a winner is selected to verify the exchange and receive a reward. Some estimate that the proof of stake model will reduce Ethereum’s energy consumption by more than 99 percent.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/18/business/the-week-in-business-rail-strike.html