(The Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen issued the following on March 10.)
CHICAGO — Signalmen employed on the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) ratified a new contract by greater than a 5-to-1 margin. On January 18, 2008, the General Chairmen approved the Agreement to send out for ratification, and ballots were sent to BRS members on February 8, 2008. The agreement’s terms mirror the recommendations of Presidential Emergency Board 242, which was created to recommend a solution to the eight-year contract dispute.
Terms of the new agreement include wage increases of about 35.2 percent over the life of the agreement, which is January 1, 2000 to December 31, 2009. Retroactive pay varies, but in general the retroactive wages should exceed $13,000 for each employee even after retroactive health and welfare contributions are fulfilled. The payments will be made in two installments — 40% within sixty days of ratification, and the remaining 60% on or before the one-year anniversary of the first payment.
The agreement provides that if Amtrak does not receive sufficient funding and revenue to pay the second retroactive payment by the one-year anniversary, it will notify the unions. After such notice, if no agreement is reached within sixty days, the unions will be free to strike.
Employee health and welfare contributions will be set at 15% of Amtrak’s insurance costs for medical, dental, vision, life and Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D) coverage. Based on that formula, the employee monthly contribution is set at $166.25 per month.
“I am pleased to announce that after a long difficult struggle, our Brothers and Sisters on Amtrak have finally won the battle. Although this is good news, this does not mean the fight is over. Amtrak’s future will require a funding-level adequate and reasonable enough to support all the needs of Amtrak and its workers.” — Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen International President W. Dan Pickett.