By UTU news | Mon, 25 Mar 2013

By John Previsich UTU Assistant President/ GS&T | Wed, 9 Jan 2013

Discipline in the railroad industry is a curious business. I recall that when I first hired out, I was proud of my new employment. The railroad had selected me over other well-qualified applicants, and I was sent to school and provided extensive on-the-job training before being allowed to mark up.

I thought the railroad that hired and trained me actually valued a good, responsible employee who was loyal to the company and who wanted to give a fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay.

And then I marked up. On my first trip for pay, we saw a burning fusee very close to the rail on the outside of the curve. Thanks to the engineer, we stopped short of the burning fusee, with plenty of room to spare. Nonetheless, two company officers climbed on board and told us we got lucky this time, but maybe next time the fusee would be a little harder to see or some other more difficult test might be coming our way. There was not a word of praise for the heads-up performance of the engineer or a welcome aboard to the new guy. [Read more…]

By UTU News | Wed, 2 Jan 2013

By UTU News | Wed, 16 Jan 2013

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has signed an accord with BNSF Railway Co. announcing BNSF’s voluntary revision of several personnel policies that OSHA alleged violated the whistleblower provisions of the Federal Railroad Safety Act and dissuaded workers from reporting on-the-job injuries.

FRSA’s Section 20109 protects railroad workers from retaliation for, among other acts, reporting suspected violations of federal laws and regulations related to railroad safety and security, hazardous safety or security conditions, and on-the-job injuries.

“This is a tremendous victory for UTU members and all railroad workers employed by BNSF,” said UTU International President Mike Futhey. “The Obama administration’s efforts to stop the harassment and intimidation of employees concerned about safety in the workplace is a win for all workers. It is just one of the reasons why this union supported President Obama’s reelection.” [Read more…]

By UTU News | Wed, 26 Dec 2012
One of the strongest studies validating the need for two-person crews and intensive training for conductors has come from the Federal Railroad Administration.

The conclusion is that the conductor and engineer function as a team, with managing multiple priorities essential to safe train operation – especially with regard to use of positive train control technology that will be installed on some 40 percent of mainline track.

The FRA observes that such mixed territory operation will require a higher level of vigilance by the train crew, including detailed knowledge of territory that can come only from intensive conductor training. [Read more…]