The Voice of Transportation Labor
Amtrak Board Chairman Tom Carper has won endorsement from Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) for renomination by President Obama. That nomination would require Senate confirmation. Carper, a former mayor of McComb, Ill., has served on the Amtrak board since March 2008 and has been its chairman since January 2009. Said Durbin in his letter [...]
Stem “Every Amtrak employee should be placed in a productive position that supports the needs of customer service and managed growth of operations,” UTU National Legislative Director James Stem told Congress Nov. 28. “Amtrak operating crews are among the most productive workers in that system and our members are ready and eager to work,” he [...]
Distractions occur everywhere in our daily lives, but when those in safety sensitive positions are distracted on the job, the results too often result in death or career-ending injuries. A collaborative effort among the Federal Railroad Administration, rail labor and carriers has been launched to educate and raise awareness through peer-to-peer programs of the dangers [...]
One of labor’s strongest friends on Capitol Hill was Rep. Marty Frost, a centrist Democrat from Texas who served in the House of Representatives from 1979 to 2005, and who served two terms as chair of the House Democratic Caucus. Post Election Day, Frost wrote an opinion article published by The Hill, an independent newspaper [...]
By James Stem – UTU National Legislative Director – UTU endorsements for President of the United States and election to Congress are undertaken with considerable thought, responsibility and accountability. Prior to issuing these endorsements, we did an exhaustive job evaluating the candidates’ positions on transportation, collective bargaining, workplace safety, pensions and benefits, and Medicare. The endorsements [...]
By National Legislative Director James Stem – You remember Humpty Dumpty, the character created by children’s author Lewis Carroll. Most famously, Humpty Dumpty said, ‘When I use a word, it means just what I choose it to mean.” Humpty Dumpty may well have written the language for Proposition 32, which goes before California voters on [...]
By John Risch,Alternate National Legislative Director – Congressional elections do matter. They make a difference when it comes to our job security, wages, benefits, retirement and our safety in the workplace. President Obama and labor-friendly congressional representatives and senators not only believe in supporting public transit, Amtrak and high-speed rail, they assured funding was available [...]
Conservative Republicans Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan are committed to repealing the Affordable Care Act. Conservative Republicans also are committed to privatizing Social Security and turning Medicare into a voucher program with more costs coming out of retirees’ pockets. By contrast, President Obama is committed to preserving Social Security and Medicare as we know it. [...]
You can’t vote often on Election Day, Nov. 6, but you can vote early. Most states permit early voting by those who may not be near their voting location on Election Day. For UTU members who work unconventional hours and are frequently at away-from-home terminals, early voting assures you will be able cast a ballot. [...]
It is in off-the-cuff comments – rather than scripted press conferences, staged public speaking events or political advertisements on television – that often best reveal the “real” candidate and their thoughts. In off-the-cuff comments by Mitt Romney, at a $50,000 per person fund raiser in Boca Raton, Fla., in May – when Romney didn’t realize a [...]
Notified you are under investigation? Wish to file a grievance? Membership rights question? Click on the “Membership Toolbox” for your answer. … (Read more)
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
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)
