BLET News
Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Sisterhood and solidarity from BLET and BMWED on display at annual Teamsters Women’s Conference
From left: Darice Gilliam, BLET Arizona, SLBC; Rhonda Thompson, BMWED Lodge 358; Jennifer Ross, BMWED Lodge 788; Becky Huebner, Secretary-Treasurer of BLET Div. 624; Bernadette Murphy, BMWED Lodge 509; Marketa Wells, BLET DIv. 766; and Megan Mead, Director of BLET...
Texas: Registration now open for upcoming rail hazmat/chemical emergency response training programs
Class participants will engage in a simulated hazmat response wearing full safety gear. ____________________ The Rail Workers Hazardous Materials Training Program is hosting four in-person rail worker training sessions in late 2025 and early 2026 in Houston during...
OSHA blasts Union Pacific as “serial violator” in Texas whistleblower case
The Union Pacific Railroad remained in the headlines this week over its wrongful termination of a BLET member. As reported in our August 29 Weekly Recap, a BLET member received more than $184,000 in back pay after the BLET’s UP-Southern Region GCA got him his job...
Rail safety: BLET fights for worker safety as “regulatory sprint” reaches September 2 deadline
BLET representatives at meetings with the Federal Railroad Administration in Nashville, Tenn., during the week of September 1, 2025. ____________________ The BLET rose to the challenge created by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT)’s “regulatory sprint,”...
In case you missed it: History of BLET Zoom presentation now available online
Last month, the Teamsters Human Rights and Diversity Commission, in conjunction with the Teamsters History Project, hosted a Zoom presentation highlighting the history of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET). For those of you who may have missed...
Union Pacific: BLET reaches tentative agreement with UP
The BLET has reached a tentative on-property agreement with the Union Pacific Railroad covering rates of pay, work rules, and health & welfare benefits for over 6,000 BLET members employed at UP. Highlights of the tentative five-year contract include: General wage...
Texas: Remote control derailment at UP’s Davidson Yard in Fort Worth renews questions about trains operated without locomotive engineers at the controls
The scene from Davidson Yard following the derailment of a remote control train on August 31. It resulted in a hazmat release and shelter-in-place order for nearby residents. Image: WFAA-TV ____________________ Another derailment involving a remote control train...
Surface Transportation Board: Robert Primus fired
Surface Transportation Board member Robert E. Primus said on his LinkedIn profile that he received an email from the White House terminating his position on August 28. The move comes a few months before the STB is expected to receive the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern...
Pennsylvania: SEPTA halts planned Regional Rail service cuts following court order
A September 4 court order from a Philadelphia judge has stopped SEPTA from implementing a planned 20 percent cut to Regional Rail service but is allowing the agency to go ahead with a 21.5 percent fare hike. This is the latest development in the ongoing financial...
New York: Replacement ballots in LIRR strike authorization vote available as of September 8; Ballots due September 15
BLET members working for Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) should have received a mailing from the National Division regarding the union’s strike authorization vote at the commuter railroad. Members who are eligible and have not received a strike authorization packet by...
BLET engineer at the throttle as Amtrak’s “Mardi Gras” service returns to the Gulf Coast after a 20-year absence
It was a bit of a homecoming for BLET locomotive engineer Ted Graham when he pulled back the throttle to officially relaunch Amtrak’s “Mardi Gras” service along the Gulf Coast on August 19. Graham, a member of BLET Division 18, previously worked as an assistant...
Advocacy by BLET members and others appears to have stopped a gutting of the RRB’s programs — for now
Projected Congressional funding for the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) is significantly higher than anticipated, thanks in part to the hard work and tenacity of the BLET and its members. Earlier this week, the House’s Appropriations Labor, Health, and Human Services...
Texas: OSHA reaffirms reinstatement of BLET locomotive engineer with full back pay, orders UP to pay significant punitive damages after injuries in an Uber ride-share called by the company
A wrongfully-terminated BLET member received more than $184,000 in back pay after the BLET got him his job back, and he was awarded an additional $150,000 in punitive damages after a federal whistleblower investigation found that the Union Pacific Railroad violated...
C3RS: Big railroads would rather retaliate than safely operate
An investigation released last week on railroad safety from the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at the University of Maryland — later broadcast on NPR, published in newspapers such as The Washington Post, and distributed by the Associated Press — quotes two...
Amtrak: Next generation Acela debuts on the Northeast Corridor
Representing BLET at the inaugural run, from left: Vince Verna, VP & NLR; Mark Wallace, National President; and Gary Best, First Vice President. ____________________ BLET locomotive engineer Earl Braxton, a member of BLET Division 482, was at the throttle as...
New York: BLET conducting strike authorization vote at Long Island Rail Road
Nearly six hundred locomotive engineers employed by the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) received ballots in the mail last week from the national union seeking authorization to call a strike at the nation’s busiest commuter railroad. LIRR’s locomotive engineers, members...
The power of unions: New study says unions uplift not just wages, but communities as well
A new report from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) details the benefits of unions to workers, communities, and democracy. The report finds a number of benefits in the 17 states with the highest union density, including higher incomes, greater access to health...
Mark your calendars for 2026: Next year’s regional meetings will be held in New Orleans and Chicago
Looking ahead to next year, the BLET’s 2026 Western Regional Meeting will be held in New Orleans, Louisiana, the week of July 13. The 2026 Eastern Regional Meeting will take place in Chicago, Illinois, the week of August 24. Please make plans now to attend one or both...
TAKE ACTION ALERT: Tell Congress to fully fund RRB
Members of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee on July 31 considered Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS) legislation, which funds the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB), National Mediation Board (NMB), and Department of Labor...
BLET Auxiliary: New survival guide for railroad families still available
BLET Executive Committee members with BLET Auxiliary national officers. ____________________ Kat Bisbikis, National President of the BLET Auxiliary, said that copies of the Auxiliary’s new railroad survival guide, “Taking Charge,” remain available to BLET members and...
Daily Headlines
BLET Auxiliary: Now available: “Taking Charge,” a survival guide for railroad families
Members of the BLET Auxiliary were busy selling raffle tickets at the Daytona Beach Regional. From left: Jodi Wallace, Chris Baldwin, Kat Bisbikis, Rachel Pharris, and Natalie Miller. ____________________ Kat Bisbikis, National President of the BLET Auxiliary,...
General President Sean O’Brien highlights list of Teamster speakers during Eastern Regional Meeting
IBT General President Sean O'Brien: “Our members are changing the game. Setting the standard. Improving the lives of their fellow Teamsters all across the country.” ____________________ Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien addressed BLET members during a rousing...
Rail unions warn DOT rollbacks could jeopardize train safety
Labor concerned about potential new power to fire FRA inspectors
June 2025 RRB Q&A: Unemployment and sickness benefits for railroad employees
A new unemployment and sickness benefit year – the twelve-month period during which the RRB makes benefit payments for days of unemployment and sickness to eligible railroad employees – generally begins each July 1 and ends on June 30 of the next year.
CPKC system cutover triggers service woes in some former KCS locations
Localized congestion, delays, and shipper frustrations follow tech switchover in Louisiana, east Texas, and Mississippi
Smuggling arrest raises questions about Mexican crews moving trains into Texas
Some U.S. workers see Mexican crews bringing trains into South Texas as a threat to American jobs and border security.
Parallel Systems begins testing autonomous cars on G&W short line
The pilot program to evaluate Parallel’s self-propelled container car was launched this week on the Heart of Georgia Railroad
Heartland Flyer service in jeopardy after Texas fails to provide funding
State support for Fort Worth-Oklahoma City not included in $338 billion budget bill
Arbitrator in CPKC, TCRC contract dispute awards 3% raises
Retroactive from Jan. 1, 2024, through Dec. 31, 2027, the new contracts include annual wage increases of 3%.
NJ Transit, BLET reach deal to end 3-day strike
The BLET represents 450 New Jersey Transit engineers who drive the agency’s commuter trains.
