BLET First Vice President Gary Best is a third-generation locomotive engineer.
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Gary Best stands ready to serve the BLET and its members. His term as First Vice President, the union’s second-highest national office, began on May 1, 2025.
“The BLET, or any union for that matter, is a lot like a baseball team,” said Best, a former Division I college baseball player. “Some players specialize in hitting home runs, getting base hits, pitching shut outs, or have great defensive skills. They do whatever they can to help the team win. In the BLET, we have members who specialize in negotiating, representing members at hearings, have a unique understanding of legislative affairs, or have union administration skills. I am honored to serve the men and women of this great organization, and I am proud to do whatever I can to help our team win.”
Best specialized in the union’s protective side as General Chairman for nine years (2013-2022), enforcing and negotiating contracts for approximately 1,200 active members at the CSX-Eastern Lines General Committee of Adjustment. When he was elected National Vice President in 2022, Best was assigned to the Union Pacific Railroad, where he honed his skills by assisting the BLET’s six Union Pacific GCAs in representing approximately 6,500 active members. In 2023, Best aided the General Chairmen in negotiating a first of its kind paid sick leave agreement for UP locomotive engineers, as well as an 11/4 scheduling agreement to improve members’ quality of life.
Best comes from a railroad family and is a third-generation locomotive engineer. His grandfather, L.D. Broome worked as a locomotive engineer for the Seaboard Air Line and Seaboard Coast Line over a four-decade career (1944-1980). Best’s father, Danny Best, was a locomotive engineer for the SCL and CSXT throughout his railroad career (1970-1997).
Best said: “As locomotive engineers, we are all on the same team as members of the BLET. I would ask all members to step up to the plate, get involved, and do whatever you can to help our team be successful.”