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☆ What the proxy fight at Norfolk Southern means for railroad safety
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The fight has split the railroad’s unions, who disagree which management team – the current Norfolk Southern leadership or one proposed by activist investor Ancora Holdings – would be best for safety and the railroad’s employees. Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw, third from left, listens to testimony during a hearing held by the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee on March 22, 2023 in Washington, DC. The committee heard testimony on "Improving Rail Safety in response to the East Palestine Derailment." BLET said that Orr’s appointment shows that Norfolk Southern is committed to additional use of PSR, no matter which side wins the the proxy fight. On February 3rd, a Norfolk Southern Railways train carrying toxic chemicals derailed causing an environmental disaster.

Persons: Alan Shaw, Amit Bose, Win McNamee, Bose, ”, “, Jeremy Ferguson, Shaw, “ Shaw, Jerry Sturdivant, John Orr, BLET, Michael Swensen, Jim Barber, Glass Lewis, Ancora Organizations: New, New York CNN, Norfolk, Norfolk Southern, Ancora Holdings, PSR, Federal Railroad Administration, Senate Commerce, Science, Transportation, Shaw, SMART, of Locomotive Engineers, Trainmen, NS, Canadian Pacific, Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Way Employees, Norfolk Southern Railways, Teamsters, UPS, CSX, Union Pacific Locations: New York, Norfolk Southern, Atlanta, East Palestine , Ohio, Norfolk, East Palestine, Washington ,, Canadian Pacific Kansas, Palestine, ”, NS

Many companies have complained about poor railroad service over the past couple years as the industry worked to recover from the depths of the pandemic. It, however, welcomed regulators establishing some clear minimum service standards for railroads that never existed before and requiring railroads to report more details about their performance. Getting the rule right is important because roughly 75% of refineries and petrochemical manufacturers are only served by a single railroad. Canadian regulators have long had similar rules that allow companies to hire other railroads to deliver their goods. The Canadian rules don't require companies to prove they are getting poor service like the proposed new U.S. rules.

Persons: Scott Jensen, Martin Oberman, ” Oberman, Rob Benedict, Benedict, Ian Jefferies, ” Jefferies, Jeremy Ferguson, ” Ferguson Organizations: — Companies, Surface Transportation, American Chemistry Council, Chemistry, American, and Petrochemical Manufacturers, Association of American Railroads, Transportation Division, International Association of, Rail, Transportation Workers Locations: OMAHA, Neb, U.S, North America, Canada, Mexico

☆ Norfolk Southern makes broad safety adjustments after third train derailment
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

An internal Norfolk Southern email sent Sunday and obtained by CNBC with a time stamp approximately 11 hours after the latest derailment indicated that Norfolk Southern was planning to reduce train length in an effort to prevent future incidents. Sources tell CNBC the email was given to Norfolk Southern yard managers, who are union workers in charge of stacking the trains. Norfolk Southern told CNBC other railroad carriers currently have this safety practice in place. "At Norfolk Southern, the safety of our crews and the communities we serve comes first," Connor Spielmaker, spokesman for Norfolk Southern, wrote via email. Norfolk Southern told CNBC it is actively reviewing all safety protocols to make sure trains are operating appropriately across the network.

☆ Despite East Palestine toxic train disaster, railroads still want single-person crews
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The rail safety legislation, introduced in Congress Wednesday with bipartisan support, would include a prohibition on single-person crews. There is no such existing law or federal regulation requiring both an engineer and a conductor to be on a train. The Association of American Railroads confirmed that its position in favor of one-person crews has not changed. “No data shows a two-person crew confined to a cab is safer, and train crew size should continue to be determined through collective bargaining,” a statement from UP. But it might have one or two provisions which are deal breakers for the unions, such as allowing single-person crews.

☆ Rail union bosses warn of election consequences as Senate moves closer to vote on labor deal to prevent strike
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

watch nowLeaders of the rail labor unions that have voted not to ratify the tentative labor deal tell CNBC that as the Senate moves closer to a vote on Thursday afternoon on legislation to prevent a rail strike, senators need to realize this is a humanitarian issue and their members will not forget who supported them. On Wednesday, the House passed the tentative rail labor agreement and additional legislation to add seven paid sick days, which has been one of the most important issues to rail workers in the breakdown of negotiations with freight rail companies. All three union presidents say they understand why President Biden had to push Congress to pass the tentative agreement. Biden's PEB deal 'missed the mark'Ferguson said the Presidential Emergency Board rail labor deal "missed a few marks and sidestepped a few, mainly our attendance policy issues." Supply chain congestion and rail embargoesThe unions argue that precision railroading and the lack of labor are the reasons behind congestion in the supply chain.

☆ Rail union presidents: We will support those who support us now in the general election
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailRail union presidents: We will support those who support us now in the general electionCNBC's Lori Ann LaRocco speaks with railroad union leaders about ongoing negotiations to avert a railroad workers strike, which could throw the United States supply chain into chaos. LaRocco speaks with Jeremy Ferguson, president of Smart-TD, Tony Cardwell, vice chairman of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division, and Michael Baldwin, president of the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen.

☆ America may dodge a crippling rail strike. Here’s how we got here
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The House approved two pieces of legislation Wednesday, one to impose the tentative agreements that members of four of the unions have already rejected, keeping 115,000 rail workers on the job and averting a strike. More than just sick daysThe fact that this is still an issue more than two months after an 11th-hour tentative deal was reached goes beyond the issue of paid sick days. All 12 rail unions agreed to the tentative deals that generated so much opposition. But he said the issue of sick days will not be going away. Senator Bernie Sanders, a close ally of the labor movement, tweeted “At a time of record profits in the rail industry, it’s unacceptable that rail workers have ZERO guaranteed paid sick days.

☆ Union Pacific CEO called to hearing in Washington as risk of rail strike rises
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The Surface and Transportation Board is calling Union Pacific management including CEO Lance Fritz to appear at hearings December 13-14 about the freight railroad's use of embargoes. UP carries nearly 27 percent of freight served by rail and nearly 11 percent of all long-distance freight volume. The risk of a nationwide freight rail strike in December has been rising. We have quality of life issues," said Jeremy Ferguson, president of SMART-TD, which on Monday voted to reject the labor deal, with a rail strike now potentially starting as soon as Dec. 9. Ferguson, similar to fellow union president Dennis Pierce of BLET, referenced a recent CNBC interview with Fritz, during which the Union Pacific CEO laughed when asked about the risk of a rail strike.

New York CNN Buiness —With a crippling freight rail strike looming in two weeks, leaders of four railroad unions and management of the major US freight railroads are due back at the negotiating table Tuesday afternoon. It will be the first joint negotiating session for the four unions, whose rank-and-file members rejected the five-year labor agreements similar to deals accepted by the eight other rail unions in recent months. If any one of the unions goes on strike, it would be honored by all 12 unions, which would bring US freight rail service to a halt. Union members also would receive cash bonuses of $1,000 a year. All told, the backpay and bonuses would give union members an average payment of $11,000 per worker once the deal is ratified.

☆ ‘Christmas is not canceled’ despite growing risk of rail strike
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Matt Egan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN Business —Leading retailers are sounding the alarm about the danger of a national rail strike while simultaneously stressing that a potential work stoppage won’t ruin this holiday shopping season. “Christmas is not canceled,” Brian Dodge, president of the Retail Industry Leaders Association, told CNN in a phone interview on Tuesday. Concerns about a rail strike have mounted after the largest rail union announced Monday its rank-and-file members have rejected the tentative agreement reached in September. A prolonged rail strike could cause product shortages and price spikes as nearly one-third of all freight in the United States moves by rail. “It would utterly upend the supply chain,” Dodge said, adding that concern among retail CEOs is “high” because the risk of a national rail strike is high.

"There's a lot of anger about paid sick leave among the membership" who kept goods flowing during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, said Seth Harris, a professor at Northeastern University. Labor unions have criticized the railroads' sick leave and attendance policies and the lack of paid sick days for short-term illness. There are no paid sick days under the tentative deal. Unions asked for 15 paid sick days and the railroads settled on one personal day. Railroads have slashed labor and other costs to bolster profits and are fiercely opposed to adding paid sick time that would require them to hire more staff.

Train and engine service members of the transportation division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers (SMART-TD) narrowly voted to reject the deal. Three other unions that rejected the deal have already agreed to extend a strike deadline until early December. Labor unions have criticized the railroads’ sick leave and attendance policies and the lack of paid sick days for short-term illness. Beginning on Dec. 9, SMART-TD would be allowed to go on strike or the rail carriers would be permitted to lock out workers, unless Congress intervenes. The Biden administration helped avert a service cutoff by hosting last-minute contract talks in September at the Labor Department that led to a tentative contract deal.

☆ Rail workers at biggest unions split on contract, strike potential unclear
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Eli M. Rosenberg | Eli Rosenberg Is An Investigative Tech Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Workers at two of the country's biggest rail unions split over a tentative contract their leaders had hashed out with freight rail companies — leaving open the possibility of a debilitating rail strike in the middle of the holiday season. The 28,000-member SMART-TD union, which represents rail conductors, voted no on the contract, after one of their divisions voted it down. A strike could also impact the country’s commuter rail system, with the potential to halt service entirely on some lines serviced by freight rail workers and cause backlogs and traffic snarls on others. The National Carriers’ Conference Committee, which represents rail companies in the bargaining process warned about the economic threats of a strike. The Association of American Railroads, the trade group which represents the rail companies, estimates losses of $2 billion a day.

☆ Large rail union SMART-TD votes to reject labor deal as national strike moves closer
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

SMART-TD, one of the largest railroad labor unions, voted down a tentative agreement with rail management, raising the likelihood of a strike in December. The BLET, the other largest union, voted to ratify the labor deal but said it will honor the picket line. But BMWED announced it would extend its cooling-off period if one of the larger unions voted not to ratify the tentative labor deal. SMART-TD, BMWED and BRS represent more than 50% of all rail labor. A strike would affect all of the major rail operators, including Union Pacific , Norfolk Southern and CSX .

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