This week, Congress passed a bill that effectively imposed an agreement between rail workers and their companies and prohibited a strike. Politicians feared that any work stoppage would cripple the U.S. economy for the holidays, costing the country billions of dollars.

Today, we talk about the unique, violent history of rail workers trying to fight for better union contracts. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: University of Rhode Island history professor Erik Loomis

More reading:

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Biden calls on Congress to head off potential rail strike

Big rail unions split on contract deal with railroads, raising possibility of a strike