BLET News
Daughter of BLET member a candidate for Congress in Maryland
Sarah Elfreth (center) meets with BLET Director of Political Affairs Brendan Sullivan (left) and BLET VP and NLR Vince Verna (right) ____________________ The BLET is backing the candidacy of Sarah Elfreth — the daughter of a retired BLET member — in the upcoming...
PEB 251 established to settle ongoing BLET-NJ Transit contract dispute
President Joseph R. Biden Jr. appointed Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) No. 251 to investigate the collective bargaining dispute between the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) and New Jersey Transit (NJT). Pursuant to the Railway Labor Act...
Take Action! Don’t let the budget axe fall on Railroad Retirement
BLET members and their families are urged to keep the pressure on Congress to avoid potentially catastrophic budget cuts to the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB). Please use the Take Action area of the BLET website to contact Congress today, especially if you are...
Amtrak: BLET says carrier should put money into repairs, not executive bonuses
Days before widespread failures at Amtrak this summer, it was revealed that top executives received millions in bonuses in 2023. Photo courtesy of Cory Rusch, BLET Division 659 ____________________ It’s been a rough summer for Amtrak. Major electrical problems in the...
Capitol Hill: Rail safety bills back in the spotlight
The nomination of Senator J.D. Vance (R-OH) as the Republican candidate for Vice President of the United States has put the Railway Safety Act (S. 576) back into the spotlight. Meanwhile, new legislation introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives would make C3RS...
Ohio: Division Legislative Representatives complete training
From left: Sam Schatz, Div. 447; John Peter, Div. 894; Ohio Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio (District 23, Lakewood); John Esterly, Ohio SLB Chairman; Bruce Tatgenhorst, Div. 255; and Kevin Helton, Div. 292. ____________________ During the week of June 24-28, the...
Jim and Debbie Keele mark 50-years of membership
Jim and Debbie Keele at the 2024 BLET Western Regional Meeting in Kansas City. ____________________ Congratulations to retired BLET member Jim Keele and his wife Debbie, who are celebrating three milestone anniversaries this year: Brother Jim is a 50-year member of...
Breaking News: BLET members ratify new contract with SEPTA
Members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen today ratified a new three-year contract with SEPTA. An impressive 87 percent of eligible voters cast ballots, with 94 percent voting in favor. The contract provides numerous improvements for BLET...
Ohio: House of Representatives votes unanimously to advance bill honoring fallen BLET Brother Lou Shuster
Ohio Rep. Sean Brennan is the sponsor of HB 381 and is pictured here addressing BLET members in 2023. ____________________ By a vote of 87-0, the Ohio House of Representatives passed a bill that would rename a northeast Ohio highway interchange to honor fallen BLET...
Congress: Budget proposal would gut Railroad Retirement Board
If you think phone wait times are bad now when calling the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB), think again. They could get much worse if proposed budget cuts are allowed to happen. RRB Labor Member John Bragg announced on June 26 that the House Appropriations...
NTSB derailment investigation renews concerns about detectors, tank cars and Norfolk Southern
The National Transportation Safety Board’s daylong hearing on what caused the disastrous East Palestine train derailment near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border last year gave the community, railroads and policymakers plenty to think about.
NMB news: Sweatt assumes Chairmanship, UNITE/IBT employees released from mediation
In a brief published on July 1, the National Mediation Board announced that Loren Sweatt, a Republican, has assumed Chairmanship. Deirdre Hamilton and Linda Puchala, both Democrats, will remain as Members of the Board. The NMB also confirmed on July 1 that, pursuant...
California: BLET members ratify new agreement with PHL
The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET), Division 214, and Pacific Harbor Line, Inc. (PHL) have overwhelmingly ratified a three-year extension to their current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) well ahead of any deadline. The agreement...
Nevada: Union Pacific’s remote control locomotives are a threat to public safety
Just days after an explosive New York Times investigative report exposed the dangers of remote control technology, the Union Pacific launched a wide-ranging initiative to implement remote control locomotives (RCLs) in Las Vegas. Brother Matt Parker, Chairman of the...
BLET, BMWED members participate in Teamsters Women’s Conference
More than 1,500 Teamster Sisters attended dozens of workshops to empower workers and better advocate for their fellow members on the job during the Teamsters Women's Conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico, June 23-26. Topics included union bylaws, heat stress, internal...
Excessive train length: Rail industry is still lobbying against safety rules
A recent article published at Jacobin.com examines how the railroad industry has continued to aggressively lobby against federal safety regulations since the 2023 East Palestine disaster, even as new data suggests that increases in train length have made derailments...
Act now! SEPTA, PHL members should request a replacement ballot ASAP
Pacific Harbor Line intermodal train. Photo courtesy of Jason Burke ____________________ Balloting is currently underway on tentative agreements at two BLET-represented railroads — SEPTA and Pacific Harbor Line (PHL). Eligible members who have not received a ballot...
Ohio Senators ramp up pressure to pass Railway Safety Act
U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and J.D. Vance (R-OH) are pressuring Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and skeptical Republicans to pass the Railway Safety Act. The NTSB’s damning investigation of Norfolk Southern’s toxic 2023 train derailment in East...
Supreme Court strips regulatory power from federal agencies, with big impact on railroad industry
In late June, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 6-3 to kill a legal precedent known as the “Chevron deference.” Industry publication Railway Age said the landmark ruling would likely “clip the wings” of rail industry regulators such as the Federal Railroad Administration....
UP-Central Region General Chairman Ronnie Rhodes retires
Ronnie Rhodes (right) pictured with his wife Lisa at the 2023 Milwaukee regional meeting. ____________________ The BLET National Division extends best wishes to Brother Ronnie Rhodes, who retired from his position as General Chairman of the Union Pacific-Central...
Daily Headlines
FRA makes more than $2.4 billion in CRISI grant funding available
CRISI grants advance projects that modernize America’s freight and intercity passenger rail infrastructure, allowing people and goods to move with greater safety, efficiency, and reliability.
BNSF, CPKC say they won’t pay new Minnesota safety fee
BNSF Railway and CPKC, the two largest railroads in Minnesota, do not plan to make payments of approximately $1 million to the state required by a law passed last year.
Railroads scramble to keep freight moving after Baltimore port disruption
When the collapse of Francis Scott Key Bridge disrupted operations at the Port of Baltimore on Tuesday, major railroad carriers kept freight flowing despite the inevitable risk of delays.
Three-train NS crash in Pennsylvania highlights shortcomings of positive train control
None of the circumstances the National Transportation Safety Board described Tuesday in its preliminary report on the March 2 derailment would have triggered the automated positive train control system to stop the trains.
AAR reports rail traffic for the week ending March 23, 2024
For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 470,593 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.1 percent compared with the same week last year.
CSX, NS count the cost of tragic Baltimore bridge collapse
Class I railroads CSX and Norfolk Southern say that their customers should expect delays with some shipments following the tragic collapse of the I-695 Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on March 26.
NTSB looks at NS rules, procedures, and training as investigation of three-train Pennsylvania incident continues
The National Transportation Safety Board is looking at Norfolk Southern rules, procedures, and crew training relating to train handling as it continues its investigation into the collision and derailment involving three trains that occurred March 2 in Lower Saucon Township, Pa.
Vote on insurgent effort at NS set for May 9
Norfolk Southern has set May 9 as the date for its annual meeting, when an insurgent campaign to put outside directors on the company’s board and a new CEO in place will come to a head.
U.S. Class I workforce grew in February, STB data shows
The U.S. Class I workforce grew a bit larger last month. As of mid-February, the large railroads employed 123,377 people in the United States, up 0.6% from January’s level and 2.6% from February 2023’s count.
Analysts expect NS and activist investors to reach agreement in proxy fight
Norfolk Southern’s decision to hire a chief operating officer with Precision Scheduled Railroading expertise increases the likelihood that the embattled railroad will reach a settlement with activist investor Ancora Holdings, Wall Street analysts say.
