WASHINGTON, D.C., March 17 — BLET National President Dennis R. Pierce testified this morning before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials hearing on “Federal Regulatory Overreach in the Railroad Industry: Implementing the Rail Safety Improvement Act.”
The focus of the hearing was the implementation of the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008, and President Pierce took the opportunity to address the problems associated with the Hours of Service portions of the legislation, among other issues in his oral testimony.
“The law is not combating fatigue to the degree Congress intended in unscheduled freight service,” President Pierce told the Subcommittee. “Train line-ups are as unreliable as ever, and we believe it’s time to move to a 10 hour call. Further, the AAR agreed with us and the UTU 2½ years ago that 8 hours off duty was sufficient at the away-from-home terminal, and it’s time to put that understanding in the law.”
President Pierce also asked Congress to close some loopholes in the law that do not allow BLET members to get the rest they need.
“Because it is not based on science, the 6 days worked-48 hours off provision is not mitigating fatigue,” President Pierce said. “The law allows the railroads to create situations where employees who are truly fatigued do not qualify for 48 hours off. Conversely, the application of the law requires others who are not fatigued to take 48 hours off.”
During the hearing, the Subcommittee primarily focused on the implementation of Positive Train Control, and President Pierce took the railroads to task for their efforts on this critical issue.
“Over the past 19 years some 70 BLET members were killed in the line of duty, and PTC could have prevented nearly 50 of those deaths,” he said. “To me, there is no such thing as federal regulatory overreach when it comes to returning our members safely to their families. It is appalling that profits would be placed ahead of our members’ lives.”
Also in attendance at the hearing on behalf of the BLET were: Vice President & National Legislative Representative John Tolman; National Vice President Steve Bruno; Montana State Legislative Board Chairman Craig Gilchrist; District of Columbia Legislative Board Chairman Herbert Harris Jr.; Montana State Legislative Board Secretary-Treasurer D.B. Kenner; and BLET Director of Research Thomas A. Pontolillo.
A PDF of President Pierce’s written testimony is available at:
www.ble-t.org/pr/pdf/2011-03-17 Pierce.pdf.