CLEVELAND, August 27 — The Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO, unanimously passed a “Safe and Secure Railroad Operations” resolution at the 2004 convention in Tacoma, Wash., on August 26.
The resolution calls for railroads operating within the state to use fully rested (by society’s standard) railroad workers; locomotive engineers certified to the highest possible skill level to operate locomotives in all railroad operations; and demands that the Federal Railroad Administration promulgate rules to ensure railroad workers are not unnecessarily fatigued.
“I think it sends a strong message organized labor is not going to stand by and let the railroads dictate the level of safety, training, and rest railroad workers require to safety perform their duties,” said Dr. Mark Ricci, Chairman of the BLET’s Washington State Legislative Board. “Railroad workers demand a higher level and the people of Washington State demand a higher level.”
Ricci has spearheaded a campaign to secure a state-level regulation of remote control locomotive operations.
The passage of the AFL-CIO resolution follows on the heels of a similar resolution adopted last month by the King County Labor Council of Seattle, Wash. The Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO represents over 400,000 union brothers and sisters throughout the state.
A copy of the resolution is available here.