The Voice of Transportation Labor
The International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers is conducting a survey to better understand your experience as a member of this union. Your participation in this survey would be greatly appreciated. As a member of the Transportation Division of SMART, your feedback and insight are critical to discovering how we can [...]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak rolled out three new locomotives on Monday, the first step in the railroad’s plan to modernize its aging fleet of trains. The three are the first of 70 new locomotives the railroad is buying to operate on the Northeast Corridor between Washington and Boston. Amtrak said they would operate at speeds up [...]
Effective April 2, 2013, item 12 has been added to the list of exclusions for which benefits under the Discipline/Income Protection Program will not be paid to a participant who is suspended or discharged from employment for disciplinary/decertification reason. Item 12 has been added to the list as a result of action taken by SMART [...]
The evening of Jan. 5, 2005, was dry and cool in Graniteville, S.C. At 6:10, a 12-car Norfolk Southern freight train pulled up to the Avondale Mills textile plant, and Jim Thornton, a conductor with 18 years’ experience, climbed down from the locomotive to open a switch and let the train roll onto a siding. [...]
WASHINGTON – In 2011, 4,693 workers were killed on the job, according to a new AFL-CIO report, “Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect.” That is an average of 13 workers every day. In addition, another estimated 50,000 die every year from occupational diseases – an average of 137 a day, bringing the total [...]
The U.S. Court of Appeals ruled on Tuesday against the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and their ruling that workplaces must display posters about union organizing, bargaining and protests. The law would have insisted that more than six million private employers post a “notification of employee rights.” The one-page poster was to include basic rights [...]
WASHINGTON – U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood May 3 announced he is providing $30.2 million to Amtrak to repair damage caused by Hurricane Sandy along its heavily-traveled Northeast Corridor. The funding comes from the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013 and is being provided by the Federal Railroad Administration. “Amtrak serves as a critical transportation [...]
Amtrak marked 42 years of service on May 1 with a plea for more money from Congress. CEO Joe Boardman said Amtrak remains a “vital part” of the nation’s transportation system, but can’t continue to fulfill its “national mission” without more money from Washington. Read the full story at The Hill.
The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation will hold a confirmation hearing on transportation secretary nominee Anthony Foxx May 22, according to Chairman John D. Rockefeller IV (D-W.Va.). President Obama announced April 29 Anthony Foxx as his nominee for the next Secretary of Transportation. Foxx is currently the mayor of Charlotte, N.C, which he [...]
WASHINGTON – An alleged al Qaeda-backed plot to derail a U.S. passenger train in Canada sought to exploit the vulnerabilities of railroads that have not gotten much attention from the American public. While the United States has sharply tightened security around airlines since the September 11, 2001, attacks, trains are far harder to police, with [...]
Notified you are under investigation? Wish to file a grievance? Membership rights question? Click on the “Membership Toolbox” for your answer. … (Read more)
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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 … (Read More)
The dates and locations of the 2013 UTU regional meetings are: July 1-3: Boston, at the Westin Boston Waterfront July 29-31: Anaheim, Calif., at the Hilton Anaheim Members and attendees can now register online for a UTU regional meeting, as well … (Read More)
