Progress Through Unity

Obama Will Veto Bill

April 14, 2013 By

From UTU News, April 12, 2013

The Obama Administration strongly opposes H.R. 1120, which would prohibit members of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) duly appointed by the president from taking any action.

If the president is presented with legislation that would undermine the functions of the National Labor Relations Board, his senior advisors will recommend that he veto the bill.

H.R. 1120 was introduced March 13 by Rep. David P. Roe (R-Tenn.) and has 25 co-sponsors.

The Obama administration said “This legislation hurts middle-class and working families, weakens the economy and undermines America’s economic competitiveness. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Industry Related

50 Scholarships Available

April 7, 2013 By

From UTU News – April 4, 2013

The AFL-CIO and Union Privilege (also known as Union Plus) announced today they have partnered together to offer students a chance to win scholarships commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

They will award 50 scholarships of $5,000 each to high school seniors to help pay for college costs. To apply, students must fill out an application, write an essay and provide a letter of reference from a teacher or other adult familiar with their achievements.

The winners will be chosen from the sons or daughters of union families or of current members of an eligible community organization. Applicants must apply by July 1, 2013.

Click here for more information.

Filed Under: Industry Related, Local 60 News

In-cab Communication

April 7, 2013 By

From UTU News – March 24, 2013

In-cab communication is an essential element in overall railroad safety. Too many fatal accidents and injuries have been attributed to a lack of or insufficient “in-cab communications.” Peer-to-peer interaction is the key component to effective in-cab communications, according to the UTU’s Rail Safety Task Force.

Everyone knows someone who can benefit from peer-to-peer interaction. Post-accident discussions often include statements like “I knew this would happen” or “it was just a matter of time.” It is absolutely critical that we speak up before an incident.

At the end of the day, we all want the same things. We all want to be able to go home to our families the same way we left them. It is our responsibility as union members to speak up any time, anywhere a risky behavior or unsafe action may come up. You never want to have the thought, “I wish I had said something.” We owe it to ourselves, as well as our other brothers and sisters, to speak up and communicate frequently in the locomotive cab about the operations of the train. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Industry Related, Local 60 News

NTSB makes recommendations after investigation

March 31, 2013 By

By UTU news | Mon, 25 Mar 2013

The National Transportation Safety Board has issued 12 new safety recommendations as a result of its investigation of the Sept. 30, 2010, collision of two freight trains near Two Harbors, Minn.

The NTSB recommendations were issued to the following organizations: the Federal Railroad Administration, Canadian National Railway, Union Pacific Railroad, Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, Kansas City Southern Railway Company, Norfolk Southern Railroad, American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association, BNSF Railway, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen and the United Transportation Union.

In a letter to SMART Transportation Division (UTU) President Mike Futhey, NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman requested that UTU “work with the Canadian National Railway and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, to develop and implement a non-punitive peer audit program for the Canadian National Railway’s North Division, focused on rule compliance and operational safety. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Industry Related

They hire you, then work to fire you!

March 31, 2013 By

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…]

Filed Under: Industry Related

Rail random alcohol, drug test-rate static for 2013

March 31, 2013 By

By UTU News | Wed, 2 Jan 2013

Random alcohol and drug testing rates for railroad workers in safety sensitive positions will remain at the same rate during 2013 as 2012.

The Federal Railroad Administration said that because the random alcohol testing violation rate has remained below 0.5 percent for the past two years, the minimum random alcohol testing rate will remain at 10 percent for calendar year 2013.

The FRA also said that because the random drug testing violation rate has remained below 1 percent for the past two years, the minimum required annual random drug testing rate will remain at 25 percent for calendar year 2013.

Individual railroads, however, may require a higher rate of testing.

Filed Under: Industry Related

OSHA, BNSF reach accord over whistleblowers

March 31, 2013 By

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…]

Filed Under: Industry Related

New Passenger Hours of Service

March 31, 2013 By

FACTS ABOUT NEW PASSENGER HOURS OF SERVICE
By: Mike Reilly
General Chairman

I have taken the liberty of taking key components of the new Passenger Hours of Service Regulation and reviewing these important sections.  I wish to extend our thanks to the BLE&T’s General Chairman Dave Decker  and member Robert Davia who assisted in providing information for this document.  This final rule is authorized by the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008, which for the first time in history, gives FRA the authority to replace the existing statutory limitations (first enacted in 1907) with a new set of hours of service regulations governing train employees providing passenger rail transportation.  Freight and Passenger service has always been under the same hours of service requirements.  With the passage of this new law, Congress gave the passenger railroads the opportunity work out a new passenger hours of service requirement.  This required that the Government (DOT / FRA), Railroad Management and Railroad Labor meet to come to a consensus on the language of new passenger hours of service requirement by October of 2011, otherwise the passengers employees would be subject to the same provisions as the freight railroads.  Knowing that the provisions of the freight hours of service requirements would severely hamper our members earning ability, UTU was forceful in molding these new regulations.  [Read more…]

Filed Under: Industry Related, Local 60 News

FRA on Conductor Certification

March 30, 2013 By

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…]

Filed Under: Industry Related

FRA issues new report on fatigue

March 25, 2013 By

From UTU News – Feb 25, 2013

The Federal Railroad Administration has issued a new report on the status of fatigue among railroad industry employees.

In 2001, the FRA began examining the fatigue status of safety-critical railroad employees by using logbooks to collect work and sleep data over a period of two weeks from a representative sample of employees in each group.

The research in this report was conducted prior to implementation of the Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (RSIA), which made significant changes to limitations on hours of work for railroad employees. Consequently, the information in this report can serve as a baseline for examining the adequacy of existing statutory or regulatory limitations on hours of work to prevent worker fatigue.

This report draws on the results of several prior studies, all conducted with similar methodology, to characterize the prevalence of employee fatigue in the U.S. railroad industry. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Industry Related
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