The 17,000 union workers of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad are going on strike over the railroad's attendance policies.

The SMART Transportation Union released the following statement: “This unprecedented BNSF policy repudiates direct and clear contract language and, in application, will attempt to force our members to report for duty without regard for their medical condition as we struggle to come out of a pandemic,” the presidents said. “It also stands to take away any ability by our members to avoid working fatigued when they are routinely called without warning due to the complete lack of reliable train lineups, thus creating the potential for an even more unsafe railroad operation. So-called ‘forced overtime’ in an industry where safety is so critical not only repudiates our agreements, it stands to enact irreparable harm on hundreds of full-time employees whose non-workplace obligations prevent them from being at work every day of their life.”

Would BNSF be facing this labor dispute if it weren't for the hysteria from the pandemic panic narrative?

Would supply chains be this broken?