BLET News
Utah: Ballots are in the mail for tentative agreement with Utah Railway
A contract ratification vote is underway for BLET members at the Utah Railway. Ballots were mailed this week to members to vote on a tentative on-property agreement governing rates of pay, benefits and work rules for approximately 42 operating employees. The five-year...
Arkansas: Ballots are in the mail for tentative Missouri & Northern Arkansas agreement
A contract ratification vote is underway for BLET members at the Missouri & Northern Arkansas Railroad (M&NA). Ballots were mailed this week to members to vote on a tentative on-property agreement governing rates of pay, benefits and work rules for...
New England: Ballots mailed as BLET reaches tentative agreement with Berkshire & Eastern
The BLET has reached a tentative contract with the Berkshire & Eastern Railroad (B&E). The tentative agreement governs rates of pay, benefits and work rules for approximately 30 members. Ballots were mailed this week. Some of the proposed contractual...
In the states: Filibuster ends Nebraska two-person crew bill; BLET member shines light on rail safety in Nevada
A filibuster stretching over three days derailed a proposal in Nebraska's unicameral legislature to require two-person train crews. State Sen. Mike Jacobson sponsored the proposal, which had been introduced multiple times in recent years. This was the first time it...
DOT Secretary Buttigieg aligns with BLET on rail safety in National Public Radio interview
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg: “Just basic common sense to me says that you at least want to have two people on board a train that might be carrying hazardous materials, that might be going at a high speed through communities.” IBT Image ____________________...
Celebrating Black History Month: Did you know that an African American inventor was responsible for improvements that made the coupler safer?
Andrew Jackson Beard (1849-1921), an African American inventor, was awarded patents in 1887 and 1899 for improvements to the automatic railroad car coupler. Beard had lost a leg in a car coupling accident earlier in his life. Original railroad couplers required the...
BLET leads joint labor endorsements of Homendy, Primus
The BLET is rallying rail labor support for the reappointment of Jennifer L. Homendy as Chair of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the appointment of Robert E. Primus as Chairman of the Surface Transportation Board (STB).
State legislative update: Virginia rail safety bill advances, Iowa bill introduced
Virginia State Senator Jennifer D. Carroll Foy (center, maroon), the Chief Patron of SB 143, with the BLET’s Herb Harris (green tie) and Tim Craver (far right) and fellow supporters of the rail safety bill. ____________________ In a follow up to a recent Legislative...
Funeral tomorrow for fallen Brother Christopher M. Wilson
A visitation and funeral for fallen Brother Christopher M. Wilson will be held on February 9 in Tuscumbia, Alabama. A member of BLET Division 423, Brother Wilson was killed in a Norfolk Southern rail yard accident on January 31. The National Transportation Safety...
Eddie Hall interview: Has anything changed one year after East Palestine derailment?
In an interview with America’s Work Force Union Podcast, BLET National President Eddie Hall talked about growing concerns with rail safety one year after the tragic events of East Palestine, Ohio. He said the Norfolk Southern derailment of February 3, 2023, brought...
Remembering brother Chris Seeling: FRA final rule requires emergency escape breathing apparatuses
On January 25, 2024, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced a final rule requiring railroads to provide emergency escape breathing apparatuses to train crew members who work on hazardous materials trains. The FRA press release announcing the final rule...
East Palestine disaster: One year later, it’s time to hold railroads accountable and make safety enhancements
In an ideal world, February 3, 2024, would serve as a day to reflect on the safety improvements the rail industry has made since Norfolk Southern’s derailment and massive chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio. But the sad reality is that the rail industry has learned...
BLET negotiates C3RS safety program with Norfolk Southern
The BLET and Norfolk Southern will begin working together to improve safe train operations under a joint FRA Confidential Close Call Reporting System (C3RS). The Implementing Memorandum of Understanding (IMOU), was announced on January 29. C3RS allows operating...
Union membership grew in 2023, thanks to worker wins
On January 23, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released its annual report on union density. The report shows that union membership grew by 139,000 in 2023. Union membership in the private sector increased by 191,000 members, with a majority of new members...
BLET member killed at NS yard in Alabama
“This tragic loss underscores the safety risks present in railroading, even in the controlled environment of a rail yard,” BLET National President Eddie Hall said. “This week marks one year since Norfolk Southern’s derailment and chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio. I hope as we reflect on that disaster and on the need to continually improve rail safety that we also pause to remember Brother Wilson and the family he leaves behind.”
New England: St. Lawrence & Atlantic members ratify new contract
On January 23, BLET members ratified a new six-year agreement with the St. Lawrence & Atlantic Railroad (SL&A). The agreement provides retroactive pay dating to January 1, 2022, for all active employees, and general wage increases of 24% over the life of the...
Rail safety bills introduced in Virginia, Colorado
As we advance into 2024, the BLET is advancing rail safety legislation in multiple state legislatures throughout the United States. Previously, we reported on a bill in Nebraska. Last week, we added Virginia and Colorado to the list. In Virginia, BLET State...
New York Times: Train robberies see a 21st-Century revival
The New York Times Magazine published a lengthy story on January 23 examining modern day train robberies. The story quotes BLET National President Eddie Hall, who has 28 years of seniority as a locomotive engineer for the Union Pacific Railroad out of El Paso, Texas,...
Norfolk Southern, BLET, and SMART-TD partner with FRA to launch groundbreaking C3RS pilot program
Joint safety initiative provides employees confidential forum to report safety issues Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC), the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET), and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation...
Long Beach: BLET secures up to $18,000 in bonus payments for Pacific Harbor Line members
A new agreement between the BLET and the Pacific Harbor Line (PHL) illustrates the importance of locomotive engineers to a railroad’s success. The PHL Employee Retention Program, signed by BLET General Chairman Brian Carr on January 17, 2024, rewards BLET members with...
Daily Headlines
$430 million improvement plan for PATH
The two-year program calls for the repair or replacement of infrastructure throughout the system, including rail cars, bridges, tracks and track switches.
NS reaches $600 million settlement to resolve East Palestine class-action lawsuits
But Norfolk Southern didn’t admit to any liability or wrongdoing as a result of the settlement.
Now trains must have two-person crews. Will that continue for airplanes?
Once the Department of Transportation (DOT) on Tuesday unveiled new rules requiring two-member crews on board most freight trains, three U.S. pilot unions raised the question: Can the same policy continue for aircraft?
Report urges railroads to adopt growth strategies to regain freight lost to the highway
Recent research on potential 2030 scenarios for North American Class I railroads shows that focusing on growth — backed by a cost-efficient and reliable operation — is the only strategy likely to lead to long-term value creation.
Logjam at Canadian ports as import surge meets rail shortages
A surge of imports meeting strained rail capacity has pushed up container dwell times at North American west coast ports, especially in Vancouver.
Norfolk Southern prunes intermodal network and puts focus on operating ratio improvement
NS has eliminated 53 low-volume intermodal lanes — or 15% of its intermodal network — that had limited growth prospects. The railroad did not say how much volume would be lost as a result.
Victims of Montana asbestos pollution that killed hundreds take BNSF to court
Almost 25 years after federal authorities responding to news reports of deaths and illnesses descended on Libby, Montana, a town of about 3,000 people near the U.S.-Canada border, some asbestos victims and their family members are seeking to hold publicly accountable one of the major corporate players in the tragedy: BNSF Railway.
AAR reports rail traffic for March and the week ending March 30, 2024
Combined U.S. carload and intermodal originations in March 2024 were 1,889,186, up 4.2 percent, or 75,802 carloads and intermodal units from March 2023.
New train crew rule tests industry’s clout
A new rule finalized by the Federal Railroad Administration will require freight trains in the United States to operate with at least two crewmembers in most circumstances.
U.S. finalizes rule requiring two-person crews on freight trains
The Biden administration announced on Tuesday that it had finalized a new rule that will require the nation’s largest freight railroads to maintain their current staffing of two crew members per train, settling a contentious issue between organized labor and the industry.
