The BLET Education and Training Department, in conjunction with the National Legislative Office, will conduct a class for BLET Division Legislative Representatives in Washington, D.C., during the week of May 12, 2025.
In addition to the in-person training, this class will also be available to remote participants during the two classroom days.
The class will take place at the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Headquarters located at 25 Louisiana Avenue NW and in-person attendees will stay across the street at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill. Classroom training sessions will be held on Tuesday, May 13, and Thursday, May 15. In addition, in-person attendees will participate in a full day of lobbying on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, May 14, with the travel day home on Friday, May 16.
Given the continued national spotlight on railroad safety and recently announced closures of multiple Railroad Retirement field offices, this is a critical time for Legislative Representatives to assist the BLET in relaying the issues and concerns affecting our Organization to members of Congress.
Among other topics, the curriculum will cover the following:
• Regulatory affairs (reporting and documenting important issues);
• Political affairs (the anatomy of elections, how a bill becomes law, communications skills and correspondence with politicians);
• Understanding individual State Legislative Board bylaws; and
• State Legislative Board Trustee responsibilities.
In-person participation in this class is limited to the first 25 who register. The curriculum will be geared toward seasoned Division Legislative Representatives and new State Legislative Board Chairmen. LRs who register for the in-person training should do so with the concurrence of their respective State Legislative Board Chairman. All participants (both in-person and remote) must register for the class at: https://members.ble-t.org/EducationTraining/Register. Once registered, you will receive a confirmation email that will contain more detailed hotel information and instructions for making your room reservation if attending in-person, or a Zoom meeting link if attending remotely.
If you have any problems securing your room in our reservation block, please contact BLET Special Representative Matthew Kronyak at (201) 978-6436, or email: kronyak@ble-t.org.
Those who successfully complete the May 13 and 15 in-person classroom training sessions will be eligible for a $275.00 per diem from the North American Railway Foundation (NARF). NARF does not pay stipends for the day of lobbying. The stipends will be paid directly to the Secretary-Treasurer of the Division, or the State Legislative Board.
NARF is a non-profit foundation formed by the Brotherhood’s Relief and Compensation Fund (BR&CF) to support rail history, education, safety and technology in the United States and Canada. With initial funding and continued Board of Directors stewardship coming from the BR&CF, NARF has supported many non-political projects throughout the United States and Canada. The primary focus of these efforts has been in support of organized rail labor — giving back to all the men and women of the railroad community across North America.
For more information, please contact David Estes, BLET National Secretary-Treasurer and Director of the BLET Education and Training Department, at (216) 241-2630, ext. 227, or email: estes@ble-t.org.