2021 Vacation Bid
TD military veterans: We need your help
Brothers and Sisters:
Shortly before I joined the union in the mid 1990s, I served with the U.S. Army for three years in service to our country. I know I am not alone in this distinction as many of our union brothers and sisters in the SMART Transportation Division served in the military, and some continue to bravely serve.
Sharing that bond with the veterans in our union, and long before I was elected president of our union, I noticed that some recognition of our veterans’ service was long overdue. SMART-TD has not accumulated any definitive records about our members who have served in the military — whether they served, what branch they served, when they served. This is an oversight we are looking to correct by asking our members to update their veteran’s status by using a new Member Info Update form on the union website.
The link is: https://webapps.utu.org/
By updating your information, as a veteran, you will be eligible for future exclusive programs and information focused on veterans. The first step of this process was taken April 20 of this year with the addition of a Veteran Services page to the TD website. There will be more steps to come, but we first need to record who our veterans are in order to get the information out there and to better target our communications.
This project is close to my heart and a long time coming. I hope you will voluntarily participate by updating your information. Your union wants to recognize the sacrifices of all of our veterans and to better serve all those who served our country.
Thank you for your time. Thank you for your service. And please stay safe!
Fraternally,
Jeremy R. Ferguson
President – Transportation Division
U.S. Army: 1988-1991
IMMEDIATE ACTION NEEDED: Email your Member of Congress to Help Save Amtrak!
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Unless Congress takes immediate action, Amtrak is set to cut its long-distance service and cut 2,000 jobs. This doesn’t just impact members, but it impacts rural communities who rely on our nation’s rail service.
And while a cut to Amtrak may not seem at first blush to directly impact freight members and rail retirees, any loss of rail jobs, whether through cutting our nation’s passenger rail system or cutting two-person crews — these actions ultimately impact our crown jewel, the Railroad Retirement Fund.  |
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Amtrak Rally at Chicago Union Station on September 30th. Take action today. Send a message to your Members of Congress, and ask them to provide emergency funding for Amtrak during the unprecedented time in our nation’s history as we deal with the widespread economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| Fraternally, |
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| Greg Hynes National Legislative Director SMART Transportation Division |
Join Us Tomorrow 9/30 In Support of Your Fellow SMART Members
Amtrak workers will rally tomorrow, Sept. 30 at Penn Station and three other cities to urge members of Congress to provide emergency funding on the day prior to planned cuts by the nation’s major passenger rail carrier to its service and workforce.
Please join your fellow SMART Union brothers and sisters in solidarity at the closest location, listed below.
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Car Clearing Recommendations
RE-POST DUE TO INCREASED ISSUES OF PASSENGERS LEFT ON TRAIN
Brother and Sisters:
I would like all members to follow the protocol attached regarding clearing cars at your final destination. For years your officers have tried to get the carrier to put a procedure in place for clearing cars to no avail. Despite the fact there isn’t a procedure put in place, our members are always the one’s disciplined. The TRO-12 states you must clear your trains, and regardless if someone was hiding in the bathroom, fell asleep below the seats etc, our members are still penalized. Your officers are the one’s that have to defend you in these cases, without much success. Our members have over 100 safety incidents related to passengers in unauthorized areas, these include unknown incidents. We want to eliminate this problem for our members and be proactive. We expect everyone to follow these procedures, it covers single and multi-level cars. The members need to understand, this is of upmost importance. The Carrier deems this a inconvenience to the customer (which is a rule violation), not including possible damage to equipment for windows being kicked out, police being called etc. We have rules and regulations to adhere to, so lets do as much. The procedure prescribed below is universal to everyone, and every division. When your at your final destination a members concern should be assisting the riding public and clearing your trains properly. Conductors, make sure you have a proper and thorough job briefing so all parties are on the same page. This is discipline we can eliminate easily by following these procedures. If the dispatcher has a concern, make sure you make them aware your clearing your cars out properly per rule.
Fraternally,
Jerome
Concerned About Voting by Mail?
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Concerned About Voting by Mail?Gov. Phil Murphy recently signed legislation (A-4276) to “cure” any doubts about whether your mail-in ballot will be counted by Board of Election officials. Although voting by mail has been a safe and secure method to vote for many years in New Jersey, recently a small number of ballots were rejected due to deficiencies outside the control of the voter, such as lacking a postmark or having a physical defect such as a rip in the envelope or ballot. The new law, referred to as the Ballot Cure Act, establishes provisions that require county Boards of Elections to record the rejection of a voter’s ballot and notify the voter within 24 hours of a decision to reject their ballot. The voter would have up to 48 hours prior to the date of the final certification of election results to provide a cure for their ballot by following the instructions on the “cure form” that will be provided via mail or email along with the notification of the ballot’s rejection. The law also empowers voters by allowing them to check and track their ballot after they mail it or place it in a drop box. The law expands the online voter information website, which you can access here. This measure also would provide remedies specifically for signature deficiencies, allowing voters to return a “cure form” to the county Board of Elections to verify their ballot. The Secretary of State would additionally need to publish signature-matching guidelines to ensure ballots are not needlessly invalidated during the authentication process due to slight and non-fraudulent causes of signature variance. For this year’s General Election, return your mail in ballot as soon as possible! The Ballot Cure Act will ensure it is counted and also further eliminates possibilities for voting fraud. You can start your Vote-by-Mail application by clicking here. |
COVID Stress and Coping
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