Rail Industry News
Q&A: Reporting events than can affect Railroad Retirement benefits
Rights to benefits under the Railroad Retirement Act also carry responsibilities for reporting events that may affect the payment of these benefits to the employee or to members of the employee’s family.
COVID-19 vaccine mandates and Unemployment and Sickness Benefits under the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (RUIA)
The Railroad Retirement Board has prepared a list of frequently asked questions regarding those situations in which an employer’s vaccine mandate has adversely affected an employment situation.
Get the latest labor news from the Teamsters
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters updates the news section of its website each day with the latest regarding the Teamsters, domestic and global labor and trade issues, state and living wage battles, social justice, the War on Workers, and many other important...
Rail traffic uptick for week ending December 25, 2021
For the week ending Dec. 25, 2021, U.S. rail traffic was up 3.7% over the same week last year; total carloads came in 8.7% higher while intermodal volume continued its downward trend, falling 0.4%, the Association of American Railroads reported on Dec. 29. It was the 21st consecutive week of intermodal losses.
“Safety integration plan” proposed for CPKC
Potential merger partners Canadian Pacific (CP) and Kansas City Southern (KCS) on Dec. 28 submitted their safety integration plan to the Surface Transportation Board (STB) and Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) for review, meeting the STB’s procedural schedule deadline.
Dubuque, Iowa, seeks overpass, other projects from CP to address merger impact
The City of Dubuque has become the latest to voice concerns over traffic increases that could result from the Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger, writing in a letter to the Surface Transportation Board that it seeks nine forms of mitigation — including construction of a $20 million overpass — if it is to support the merger.
STB turns down shippers’ request to delay arbitration rulemaking process
The Surface Transportation Board (STB) has denied a shipper group request to pause its proposed rulemaking on a voluntary arbitration program aimed at resolving small rate cases.
Norfolk Southern to announce Q4 2021 earnings on January 26
Norfolk Southern Corporation will announce its fourth-quarter financial results during a live conference call and internet webcast at 8:45 a.m. EST on Wednesday, January 26, 2022.
UP-served Savage gulf rail facility opens
From conception to ribbon-cutting, Union Pacific, ExxonMobil, SABIC and Savage Gulf Rail have worked closely together to align infrastructure plans and optimize logistics potential for a new rail facility in San Patricio County, Texas.
RRB Q&A: Annuitants may need to increase tax withholding at age 62
(Source: Railroad Retirement Board press release, December 21, 2021) CHICAGO — Certain portions of a railroad retirement annuity are treated differently for Federal income tax purposes. The following questions and answers explain these differences and address the...
Q&A: Reporting events than can affect Railroad Retirement benefits
Rights to benefits under the Railroad Retirement Act also carry responsibilities for reporting events that may affect the payment of these benefits to the employee or to members of the employee’s family.
COVID-19 vaccine mandates and Unemployment and Sickness Benefits under the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (RUIA)
The Railroad Retirement Board has prepared a list of frequently asked questions regarding those situations in which an employer’s vaccine mandate has adversely affected an employment situation.
Get the latest labor news from the Teamsters
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters updates the news section of its website each day with the latest regarding the Teamsters, domestic and global labor and trade issues, state and living wage battles, social justice, the War on Workers, and many other important...
Supreme Court to consider vaccine mandates
The U.S. Supreme Court has scheduled a special Jan. 7 session to hear arguments over the controversial federal vaccine-or-test mandate for private employers with 100 or more workers.
CSX, NS documents offer harsh rebuttal to Amtrak filing in Gulf Coast case
In filings that maintain if not elevate the level of acrimony between the two sides, CSX and Norfolk Southern have attacked almost every aspect of Amtrak’s response to their initial argument in the dispute over Gulf Coast passenger service that is before the Surface Transportation Board.
Muscatine identifies issues with CP-KCS merger
With the proposed merger of two railways promising to bring more rail traffic to Muscatine, city officials are encouraging the public to get involved in making sure the change is an opportunity for the city rather than a problem.
Canadian regulator rules on grain entitlements
In the 2020–2021 crop year, Canadian Pacific and CN collectively moved 52,334,795 metric tons of Western grain, 9.0% more than the volume moved during the previous crop year and the highest volume ever on record.
President Biden touts supply-chain progress at L.A., Long Beach ports
President Joe Biden yesterday touted the progress made by ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach, California, in helping to unclog the nation’s backed-up supply chain.
Winston-Salem plans push to bring back passenger rail
Winston-Salem leaders plan to start pushing hard in the coming year to bring back passenger rail service to the city, but say it will be neither a quick nor easy journey.
RRB Q&A: Annuitants may need to increase tax withholding at age 62
(Source: Railroad Retirement Board press release, December 21, 2021) CHICAGO — Certain portions of a railroad retirement annuity are treated differently for Federal income tax purposes. The following questions and answers explain these differences and address the...
BLET News
Moody Law Firm offers free consultation for those targeted by CSX FMLA investigations
The office of Willard J. Moody, Esq. has extended an offer of service to BLET members who may have been unjustly fired for alleged Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) violations.
BLET reaches tentative contract with M&NA
The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) has reached a Tentative Agreement with the Missouri & Northern Arkansas Railroad (M&NA) governing rates of pay, benefits and work rules for nearly 80 operating employees.
In the Line of Duty: Michael Kempf
BLET member Michael Kempf, a member of BLET Division 35 in Jacksonville, Fla., was killed when his Amtrak train collided with a CSX train tied down in a siding near Columbia, S.C., on February 4, 2018. Brother Kempf was 54 years old. Also killed in the crash was 36-year-old conductor Michael Cella.
Heitkamp introduces two-person crew bill in U.S. Senate
On January 30, 2018, Senator Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) introduced S. 2360, a bill that would mandate a minimum crew size for freight trains in the United States.
BLET picks Cornerstone to manage its Short Term Disability plan
The BLET is pleased to announce that Cornerstone Benefits Management and their affiliates have been selected as the Third Party Administrator for the BLET Short-Term Disability (Part A and B) Benefit with MetLife, which was created pursuant to Article IV, Part A, Section 5 of the December 16, 2003 National Agreement.
BLET Statement on Not-Guilty Verdict in Lac-Megantic Trial
The following is a statement from Dennis R. Pierce, National President of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) and President of the Teamsters Rail Conference. Although it remains a travesty that criminal charges were ever filed, justice was served in the unanimous not guilty verdict issued by jurors in the Lac-Megantic trial in Sherbrooke, Quebec, on January 19, 2018.
2018 BLET Scholarship Directory
Each year, the BLET National Division compiles a list of scholarship opportunities available to the children of BLET members. Numerous financial aid opportunities are published here in the 2018 BLET Scholarship Directory.
Open enrollment extended to January 15 at midnight for Aflac Critical Illness and Accident benefits
Due to overwhelming membership interest, Aflac has granted an extension to the Open Enrollment period for the new BLET National Aflac Critical Illness and Accident benefits — first announced on September 6, 2017. All active members are now eligible for the new benefits and can enroll through midnight on January 15, 2018.
James R. Hoffa Memorial Scholarship Fund begins accepting applications from sons and daughters of Teamsters for 2018
The James R. Hoffa Memorial Scholarship Fund is now accepting applications for 2018. The deadline to apply is March 31, 2018.
Registration continues for February’s LM-2 class
Space remains for the BLET Education and Training Department’s upcoming class for Secretary-Treasurers who file LM-2 reports for their General Committee of Adjustment (GCA), Division or State Legislative Board. The class will be held in San Diego, California, from February 13-15, 2018.
