June 18, 2026 | Contract Agreement, LIRR, News, Top News
After a three-day strike and years of ongoing contract negotiations, BLET members have overwhelmingly ratified a new contract with the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR). Ballots were tabulated today, and the vote was 98 percent in favor of ratification. The BLET bargained...
June 18, 2026 | News, NS, STB, Top News, UP
The BLET and Teamsters Rail Conference applauded the recent action by the House Appropriations Committee to urge the Surface Transportation Board (STB) to conduct a rigorous review of the proposed Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern (UP-NS) merger. BLET and the Rail...
June 17, 2026 | News, NS, STB, Top News, UP
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Stop the Rail Merger Coalition today responded to alarming comments made by Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena at an investor conference in which he suggested that the Surface Transportation Board (STB) should rush its review of the proposed UP/NS merger,...
June 17, 2026 | News, Top News, Unions
“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” So begins the famous Gettysburg Address by President Abraham Lincoln. He gave this speech...
June 16, 2026 | News, NS, Top News, UP
In a major story in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution this week with the headline, “Norfolk Southern doesn’t have the crews to keep trains moving, union says,” BLET National President Mark Wallace charged that NS “doesn’t have the needed manpower to keep trains running...
June 14, 2026 | Legislation, News, Top News
The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) is supporting the bipartisan Passenger Rail Crew Protection Act, H.R. 8894, which would make it a federal crime to assault Amtrak or commuter rail workers, including passenger locomotive engineers. The bill...
June 12, 2026 | News, Teamsters, Top News, Unions
U.S. employers spend about $1.7 billion per year on union busting efforts, according to a report published by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). Much of the money is spent on consultants and law firms that specialize in preventing workers from organizing and...
June 10, 2026 | News, Teamsters, Top News
A recent study by Arizona State University’s Center for Work and Democracy examines the conundrum of labor unions in American politics today. On one hand, unions remain among the most trusted institutions in the country, but on the other hand, they are...
June 10, 2026 | News, Tentative Contract, Top News
BLET members are currently voting on two tentative agreements, one with the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and the other with Metra. Eligible members who have not yet received a ballot should call the BLET National Division’s dedicated voicemail line to have a...
June 9, 2026 | Last Run, News, Top News
Tim Wild, Local Chairman of BLET Division 62 (Houston, Texas), retired from the Union Pacific Railroad on May 1. His railroad career spanned 47 years, including 30 years as a proud member of the BLET. He hired out in 1979 with the Southern Pacific Railroad in Houston...
