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Attorney Larry Mann, named by his peers as the “nation’s foremost authority on railroad safety legislation and regulation,” has been appointed by UTU International President Mike Futhey as Rail Safety Coordinator to UTU Designated Legal Counsel (DLC).

In this newly created post, Mann will provide expert assistance on rail safety matters to UTU Designated Legal Counsel. “This will further assure that injured UTU members have the finest possible legal team on their side when bringing law suits governed by the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA),” Futhey said.

“Larry Mann also will provide assistance to UTU International legal and legislative staff in interpreting laws and regulations and recommending legislative and regulatory improvements,” Futhey said. “During his career, Larry has represented more railroad workers in safety cases before the U.S. Supreme Court than any other attorney in the country.”

In 1994, a respected legal publication named Mann “the nation’s foremost authority on railroad safety legislation and regulation.” In 1997, the Washingtonian Magazine listed Mann as among the “Best Lawyers in America,” based on peer-attorney recommendations. He also has been listed in “Who’s Who in American Law.”

Mann earned his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of North Carolina and Georgetown University Law School. His career began on Capitol Hill as a legal counsel to a U.S. senator, and later to committees of the House of Representatives.

In 1970, Mann was a principal drafter of the Federal Railroad Safety Act. He has also represented claimants following some of the worst railroad catastrophes in history.

In recent years, Mann authored a book summarizing all federal railroad safety laws and regulations, which has become a widely used reference tool for attorneys throughout America. 

The SMART-TD Membership Services Department has compiled a list of frequently asked questions from SMART-TD rail members regarding medical-benefits coverage and has supplied appropriate answers to these questions.
These questions pertain to coverage when an employee is working, is furloughed or dismissed from service, becomes disabled, or is retiring.
This list contains answers to commonly asked questions. If you have a question regarding medical-benefit coverage for yourself or your dependents that is not answered here, feel free to contact the SMART-TD Membership Services Department at 216-228-9400.
To view the list of frequently asked questions (FAQs), click here.

By Vic Baffoni
Vice President, Bus Dept.

The Bush Administration did it again.

Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters extended the right of foreign-operated trucking and transit companies to operate across the U.S. border without requiring them to even have a minimum of safeguards for U.S. citizens on U.S. roads.

The U.S. Department of Transportation requires U.S. licensed drivers to be tested, certified and comply with numerous laws and rules.

Yet foreign drivers do not have to abide by any of these requirements.

Equipment inspection, certification of ability to operate equipment, drug testing and hours of service requirements have made our roads safer.

The UTU has protested loudly and has a commitment from Rep. Jim Oberstar (D.-Minn.), who chairs the House Transportation Committee, to overturn Ms. Peters’ action. We are committed to our members and the riding public to keep the roads safe for them and their families.

The UTU Bus and Legislative Departments continue to fight the mandated changes to drug testing (observed testing).

We have joined with the Transportation Trades Department of the AFL-CIO to make a concerted effort to protect our members’ personal rights.

To contact me, call the UTU International headquarters at (216) 228-9400, Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., EDT.

Send e-mail to me at v_baffoni@utu.org. 

Now is the time of year that UTU members and everyone else across the country are seeing and hearing messages regarding voter registration and upcoming elections. While many will be focused on the candidates running for the U.S. presidency, November 2008 also brings UTU members a chance to renew their union leadership at the local level.

A special circular and an informational guide were recently sent to local presidents and secretary-treasurers to help them conduct the upcoming elections. But calls and letters received at the UTU International indicate the average UTU member has questions about the topic.

Those with detailed questions about local elections are urged to check out Special Circular No. 27 and the informational guide by asking to see the copies mailed to their local officers. Both documents are also on the UTU Web site. (Directions for finding these documents on the UTU Web site appear at the end of this article.)

For those with a general curiosity, this article offers the “short course” on the UTU election process.

(Members are cautioned that this article offers a simplified overview. Those with questions about the election process should contact the UTU International. It’s better — and cheaper — to get it right so the election outcome isn’t contested.)

Offices

Article 57 of the UTU Constitution lays the basic ground rules for local elections. It provides dues-paying UTU members a chance every three years to vote on officers at the local level. Those officers, listed in Article 56, are president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and a three-member board of trustees.

In most locals, the offices of secretary and treasurer have been combined, and in a few instances, locals of 50 or more members maintain the office of collector. No member may fill more than one of these elective offices at the same time.

Elections for local committees of adjustment, legislative representatives and their alternates, and delegates and their alternates will not be held in 2008 unless there are permanent vacancies to fill.

Elections can be conducted in two ways: by secret ballot of those present at a November meeting of the local, or by referendum (mail) vote. In the absence of local bylaws that require a mail referendum, elections must be by secret ballot of those present at a meeting of the local.

Those in attendance at the last regular meeting in October set the time, date and place of the election, and specify when ballots are to be counted in a mail referendum election.

Nominations

Before any voting occurs, members need to nominate candidates. They need to know when and how nominations will be taken and accepted, and who is eligible for office.

Nominations must be filed with the local’s secretary no later than the last regular meeting in October in the year of the election. They can be made in two ways: from the floor at the nomination meeting, or by petition. Nominations made on the floor do not need to be seconded.

If the nomination is by petition, at least five members eligible to vote must sign the petition. The local secretary is directed to promptly acknowledge receipt of such petitions and to read them at the last regular meeting in October.

When only one nomination has been received for an office, the member so nominated is declared elected “by acclamation” on the date set for the tabulation of ballots and election, and that particular post won’t appear on the ballot.

Eligibility

Generally speaking, any member paying full dues is eligible for election to any office in the UTU, but there are exceptions, noted in Article 7 of the UTU Constitution. For questions about eligibility for office, contact the UTU International.

Members eligible to vote are those who pay dues, as per Article 49 and 53 of the UTU Constitution. Retired members are not eligible to vote, nor are those relieved from paying dues and assessments (so-called “E-49” status).

Notices

Reasonable notice (not less than 10 days) must be provided all eligible members that nominations will be received at the last regular meeting in October. A sample of a so-called “special notice” is included in the election guide sent to local officers (and available on the UTU Web site). The notice should also advise that prospective candidates will be allowed, once prior to the election, to inspect a list of names and addresses of the local’s membership.

Locals not using the mail referendum ballot procedures also must use the “special notice” or a similar notification for mailing to each eligible member at his or her last known address not less than 15 days prior to the election.

Where election is by mail referendum ballot, the notice of the election can be included on the ballot, and must be mailed to each eligible member at his or her last known home address not less than 15 days prior to the date of the election.

Procedural details for holding a referendum (mail) election are beyond the scope of this article, but a general description is found in Article 57 of the UTU Constitution. Additional details are available in Special Circular No. 27 and its accompanying guide.

Ballots

In general, the local secretary will prepare ballots showing the names of all candidates and offices for which they are nominated. Incumbent officers appear first, with name of other candidates following in alphabetical order. Write-in candidates aren’t permitted. If the election is by mail, the return address on the “Important Ballot Enclosed” envelope must be the same as the mailing address on the “Ballot” envelope.

When voting by mail, a leaflet with voting instrucitons (found in Article 57) is included with the voting materials. Pay close attention and follow the instructions, or your vote won’t be counted.

Candidates

As noted earlier, candidates are allowed, once prior to the election, to inspect a list of names and addresses of the local’s membership. Candidates may send statements or circulars to members about their qualifications, but letterheads of a candidate’s local or office may not be used for this purpose.

Candidates also may have observers present during the counting and tallying process. In a mail ballot election, candidates may have observers present at the preparation and mailing of the ballots, their receipt, opening and counting.

Determining winners

The candidate receiving a majority of votes cast for a given office is declared elected. If no candidate receives a majority of the votes cast, another ballot is created with the names of the two candidates receiving the highest number of votes.

If any number of the candidates for a given office are tied for the highest number of votes, another ballot is prepared with only the names of the candidates receiving the highest number of votes.

If one candidate receives the highest number of votes, but that number doesn’t constitute a majority,
and any number of candidates are tied for the second-highest number of votes cast, another ballot is submitted to voters, and that ballot will carry only the name of the candidate receiving the highest number and the names of the candidates receiving the second-highest number of votes.

Not Over Until It’s Over

Locals must, following each election or succession to office, promptly notify the International general secretary and treasurer, interested general chairpersons, and state, district and provincial legislative boards of the names and addresses of new officers.

All records pertaining to elections must be preserved for one year, as required by federal law.

One more detail: those leaving office must promptly transfer all property, funds, securities, equipment and other effects of their office to their successor.

Details count

The information above excludes some important details, especially where referendum (mail) ballots are concerned. Members are urged to check out Special Circular No. 27, as well as its accompanying guide. Also, the U.S. Department of Labor has information available on its Web site. Go to Google and type in, “DOL, conducting union elections,” to see the rules for election of union officers.

Constitutional provisions

Information from the UTU Constitution that members should read: Article 7 (Eligibility for Office), Article 56 (Officers and Locals) and Article 57 (Elections in Locals). Copies of the Constitution in Adobe Acrobat PDF format can be downloaded from the UTU Web site at ww.utu.org. Click on “Awards/Agreements” in the red area in the upper-left-hand side of the homepage. A link to the UTU Constitution can be found on the “Awards/Agreements” page, under the column labeled, “Important Documents.” The last page of the UTU Constitution includes a chart indicating which elections are held in a given year.

Special Circular No. 27

Special Circular No. 27 addressing local officer elections and a guide entitled, “How to Hold Elections for Local Officer Positions,” are available in Adobe Acrobat PDF format from the UTU Web site at ww.utu.org. Click on “Secretary/Treas. News & Tools,” in the blue area on the left-hand side of the homepage. Once on that page, click on “More forms…” at the bottom of the column labeled, “Forms and Documents.”

Brothers & Sisters:

I am writing this as I return from the Democratic National Convention in Denver.

A high point of my week was an invitation-only luncheon with Michelle Obama and Jill and Joe Biden on Friday, Aug. 29.

What a privilege it was to hear Michelle Obama speak first-hand of her husbands’ concern and support for working families, for making our tax code more equitable, for strengthening laws in support of organized labor, and investing in transit and Amtrak. Sen. Biden also voiced a similar message of support.

Sitting with AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Rich Trumka, in a box above the convention floor to hear Sen. Obama deliver his historic acceptance speech, was another special event.

I also had opportunity to meet with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California, and House Transportation Committee Chairman Jim Oberstar of Minnesota — who, incidentally, is among those mentioned as in the running to join President Obama’s cabinet as our nation’s transportation secretary.

I also had a chat with Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, who shares many of our concerns about CSX and its management.

For sure, I was afforded these opportunities NOT because I am International President of the UTU. It is because the UTU has one of the largest political action committees (PACs) among organized labor, and one of the most effective Washington legislative offices.

The UTU PAC has helped countless labor-friendly candidates win and hold office, and those candidates never forget the assistance from our 125,000 active and retired members whose careers are, and have been, dedicated to keeping freight trains, intercity-rail and bus-passenger operations, and local transit on time and safe.

As high an honor as it was to represent UTU members in Denver, the real benefit of our political involvement occurs every day that the House, Senate and state legislatures are in session. It is on those days that UTU PAC contributions pay their compound interest, as our political friends — those who share our dreams, our concerns and our sense of justice — go to work for us in support of laws that advance the economic interests of working families.

Speaker Pelosi knew that many of our members are not Democrats. And she understood that the UTU is bipartisan in its political dealings — that we support Republicans, as well as Democrats, so long as the candidate is labor-union friendly.

Speaker Pelosi also noted that the overwhelming majority of Democratic lawmakers vote in support of working families, and that is why it is so essential to keep the House, Senate, White House and state legislatures from being controlled by anti-labor conservatives, who would privatize and endanger Social Security and Railroad Retirement, forever block the Employee Free Choice Act, destroy Amtrak, cut transit spending, continue exporting jobs, and tilt our tax codes even more in favor of corporations and the super-wealthy.

I assured Speaker Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Reid and all our other friends in Congress with whom I met that what the UTU would concentrate on during this election season is to help elect Barack Obama and Joe Biden to the White House.

We will do this, I said, by concentrating our efforts in registering our members, their families, neighbors and friends to vote. And we will then devote our efforts to explaining in a positive way to our members why it is so essential they vote their paychecks on Election Day.

While working families have legitimate differences on various social issues, we all agree that goal number one is job security, as well as better wages, benefits and workplace safety. To achieve these goals, we depend on judges and regulators (nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate) who are labor friendly. A President Obama will make those appointments; a President McCain will not.

It was anti-labor conservatives who set in motion policies that eliminated labor protection in railroad short-line sales.

It is anti-labor conservatives who want to turn Social Security and Railroad Retirement over to the free-wheeling, private-sector financial whiz-bangs who brought us the Enron, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac debacles.

It was anti-labor conservatives who called Federal Railroad Administration safety inspectors “meter maids,” and who oppose stiff carrier fines for serious safety violations.

It is anti-labor conservatives who are trying to eliminate the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA).

It is anti-labor judges to whom the carriers run for injunctions against strikes.

And it is anti-labor lawmakers and regulators who keep in place such horrendous laws and regulations that, for example, put a commercial driver’s license at risk for minor traffic infractions in a private automobile, or who impose degrading direct-observation drug-testing procedures.

These are our paycheck issues, which can insure or destroy a secure economic future for our families — now and in retirement. A labor-friendly White House is essential to change in support of working families.

As I spoke with delegates, other labor leaders, and, especially, so many young Americans who traveled to Denver just to be part of the convention, I was reminded of John Kennedy’s thrilling line from his 1961 inaugural address — that, “The torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans . . .”

Barack Obama is about change — about change that will improve our job security, wages, benefits and workplace safety.

And this is why it is so essential that UTU members, their families, their friends and neighbors come together to help elect Barack Obama president on Tuesday, Nov. 4.

In solidarity,

Mike Futhey

International President

By International President Mike Futhey

The most successful military generals are those who care best for their troops, walk among their troops and listen intently to their ideas and concerns.

This week in Denver, Barack Obama, who consistently expresses his support for working families, as well as improved rail and transit service in America, reached out to a union-represented railroader to address the Democratic National Convention.

Separately, Joe Biden, before departing for Denver, visited the Wilmington, Del., train station to visit with Amtrak employees and passengers. According to the Wilmington newspaper, Sen. Biden even took note that the Amtrak conductor, who usually manages his morning commuter train to Washington, was not working that day.

For sure, the Obama/Biden ticket is one that walks the walk — not just talks the talk — on working family issues, as well as rail and transit issues. I know. I heard it first hand in Denver, while attending the Democratic National Convention.

Although I haven’t had opportunity yet to speak with Sen. Obama or Sen. Biden directly, I did meet in Denver with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid; House Speaker Nancy Pelosi; Congressman Jim Oberstar of Minnesota, the chairman of the House Transportation Committee; former Vice President Walter Mondale; and Al Franken, who is running for a U.S. Senate seat in Minnesota.

All five inquired of the UTU’s position on rail issues, and all five recalled instances where Sen. Obama and Sen. Biden had stood up for unionized rail, transit and bus workers, and how Sen. Obama and Sen. Biden vocally and emphatically supported more local, state, regional and federal funding for public transportation.

In Denver, on the convention’s opening night, it was a dream come true for Amtrak 20-year machinist Mike Fisher, who was given three minutes in the spotlight in the Pepsi Center to express his support for Sen. Obama.

Mr. Fisher, employed in Amtrak’s Beech Grove, Ind., shops, first met Sen. Obama in April, at an Indianapolis campaign stop, after which the senator and his wife, Michelle, visited the Fisher home and sat with the Fishers at their dining room table.

During that conversation, Mike Fisher expressed concern for his job, given the perennial attempts by conservatives in Congress to gut Amtrak. Mr. Fisher also mentioned to Sen. Obama his concern that a daughter-in-law had been denied reimbursement by a health insurer for surgery following a complicated pregnancy.

Sen. Obama invited Mr. Fisher to introduce him a few days later before an Indianapolis crowd of Obama supporters. Then came the invitation to address the Democratic National Convention in Denver.

“After meeting him and talking to him and seeing how down-to-earth he was with us and understanding, he just sold me 100 percent,” Mr. Fisher said from the convention’s podium.

“[Back in April], as soon as Barack Obama came up on our front porch and shook my hand, he put me at ease,” Mr. Fisher told the convention delegates. “We went inside, and Barack put his elbows up on the kitchen table and listened. It was like talking with family. It became clear that they are regular people. Barack and Michelle grew up dealing with the same challenges most of us face. It’s pretty clear he can relate to working people and those who are struggling.”

Mr. Fisher’s talk to the Democratic National Convention followed one by Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) and preceded a talk by the president of the Chicago chapter of the Service Employees’ International Union.

Mr. Fisher received roaring applause for his final lines: “Barack Obama is the only person I trust to do the right thing for all of us. That’s why I’m here tonight and that’s why he’s my choice for president.”

I couldn’t agree more.

WASHINGTON — Railroads, the Federal Railroad Administration, and labor organizations, including the UTU, launched on Aug. 12 a new and formal effort to improve workplace safety through an emphasis on cooperation and education and a de-emphasis on aggressive discipline.

FRA Administrator Joseph Boardman termed the effort “a new risk-based approach to identify and correct safety issues before they result in train accidents and employee injuries.” Its official name is the Risk Reduction Program (RRP).

“Fixing something after it breaks or writing rule-violation notices is increasingly unlikely to result in significant additional gains in rail safety,” Boardman said in introducing the RRP at a meeting attended by carrier CEOs, FRA senior safety staff, UTU International President Mike Futhey and officials of other labor organizations.

Creation of the RRP follows several risk-reduction pilot projects.

Its initiative is to “develop innovative methods, processes and technologies to address the contributing risk factors that result in train accidents and employee injuries,” Boardman said.

“For example, a conventional approach to prevent train derailments is to search for and fix any broken joint bars that connect two sections of track. A risk-based strategy will focus on identifying the precursors that indicate a joint bar might break followed by proper preventive maintenance before it fails,” Boardman said.

The RRP framework is intended to encourage “voluntary participation of railroads and labor on projects that target specific risk categories such as confidential close-call reporting systems, peer-to-peer accident prevention strategies, and fatigue risk-management programs,” Boardman said. “It will be necessary for railroads to develop and strengthen their safety cultures so that the risk-based approach to safety eventually becomes second nature.”

Futhey described carrier officers, labor officials and FRA senior safety staff in attendance as “anxious to roll-up their sleeves and make this work.

“The UTU has a history of standing ready to participate in any program to help assure our members return home to their families in one piece,” Futhey said. “This program is intended finally to put to rest an adversarial culture that sometimes exists in the railroad industry. The UTU supports a culture of education rather than a culture of discipline.”

Boardman also presented “distinguished public service” awards to the UTU, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, and Union Pacific Railroad for their partnership in two effective risk-reduction demonstration projects — the Changing At-Risk Behavior (CAB) project, and the Safety Through Employees Exercising Leadership (STEEL) project.

The CAB project resulted in an 80 percent reduction of the targeted behavior, and the STEEL project removed more than 75 barriers to safety, Boardman said.

The awards recognized successful pilot projects on UP’s San Antonio and Livonia, La., service units. UTU members recognized by Boardman for their participation in these projects were John Dunn and Kelvin Phillips, both of Local 756, and Thomas Albarado and James “Greg” Schnabel, both of Local 1836.

To learn more about RRP, CAB and STEEL, click on the following links:

http://www.fra.dot.gov/us/Content/2029

http://www.fra.dot.gov/downloads/Research/rr0808.pdf

http://www.fra.dot.gov/downloads/Research/rr0809.pdf

By Vic Baffoni

Bus Vice President

UTU-represented bus operators and mechanics can take great pride in their accomplishments the first half of 2008, but there remain many hurdles to overcome.

The final DOT rule on drug and alcohol testing for holders of a commercial driver’s license (CDL) goes into effect Aug. 25. DOT ordered that all specimens be tested for validity, which means adulterants and urine substitutes. Also, observed collections will now be required, rather than be an option, for all return-to-duty and follow-up testing.

Holders of CDLs and commercial learner permits (CLPs) face many tougher rules, and the UTU will be there every step of the way to protect the rights of its bus members.

We still have numerous contracts to negotiate before the end of the year, and there also are many pending arbitration cases. This office has an open-door policy: Any UTU officer is encouraged to call my office for assistance anytime.

Thanks go out to Alternate Vice President-East Rich Deiser for his excellent handling of the TNM&O merger and acquisition by Greyhound. Brother Deiser negotiated rights for our former members, which included dovetailed seniority, benefit protections and additional work assignments, ensuring important protections as part of their movement into the Amalgamated Transit Union.

It is good news to see reports of sharp increases in bus ridership across America as soaring gasoline prices force a shift from automobiles to public transportation. The bad news is that transit agencies are saying they cannot dramatically increase bus service anytime soon because of rising fuel costs. The UTU is urging all levels of government to increase spending on public transportation.

Rail operating employees know the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) saves lives by forcing railroads to address safety problems carriers might ignore if the penalty were no more than the equivalent of a parking ticket.

Confirmation now comes from the Association of American Railroads (AAR), which speaks for the carriers. A July 29 presentation by AAR researcher Peter French highlights declining employee deaths and injuries during a time period that coincides with aggressive filing of FELA law suits.

Sadly, and too often, only after UTU designated legal counsel win multi-million dollar lawsuits against railroads, because profits are put ahead of safety, do carriers respond by taking workplace safety more seriously.

The FELA is an effective prod that keeps railroads focused on improving workplace safety.

The Supreme Court said the FELA is intended to “impel the carrier to avoid and prevent negligent acts and omissions.” Justice William O. Douglas said, “The FELA was designed to put on the railroad industry some of the costs of the legs, arms, eyes, and lives which it consumed in its operation.”

Notwithstanding their own data showing the success of FELA in reducing employee fatalities and injuries, the railroads — and by every means possible — continue their attempt to repeal the 100-year-old FELA for the sole purpose of avoiding liability.

Perhaps this is not surprising for an industry best known for officials who proclaimed, “The public be damned,” and, “I can hire one-half of the working class to kill the other half.”

The painful facts are that before Congress passed the FELA in 1908, more than 4,300 railroaders were killed annually, and almost 63,000 more railroad employees were injured each year.

The FELA has helped to slash those numbers by making railroads liable if an employee injury or death results in whole or in part from the negligence of any of its officers, agents or employees, or from any defect or insufficiency in equipment or roadbed.

The AAR presentation highlights that “railroads have dramatically improved safety over the last two and one-half decades.” It doesn’t require an economist to conclude that were the profit-seeking railroads not liable for their own negligence, as provided by the FELA, there likely would have been no such improvement.

Still, the 62 employee workplace deaths during calendar years 2005-2007 — and an annual injury rate of more than 5,000 rail workers — are too many. That is why the UTU and other rail labor unions continue to defend the importance of the FELA, and designate experienced legal counsel to assist brothers and sisters who fall victim to unsafe working conditions.

Unlike other industries, when rail workers are injured on the job they do not suffer simply cuts, bruises and sprains. They suffer amputations, other career ending injuries, and death.

If you are injured on the job, the FELA and your UTU Designated Legal Counsel are the best friends you and your family have.  These successful trial lawyers are specialists in handling FELA claims, and are fully experienced in dealing with railroad claim agents and railroad lawyers.

And remember: Contributory negligence is not a bar to recovering under the FELA; and the FELA prohibits railroads from retaliating against employees who provide Designated Legal Counsel with factual information on injuries to fellow employees, or who testify in support of injured workers. Each FELA lawsuit sends to the carriers a message they cannot ignore.

A listing of UTU Designated Legal Counsel — attorneys who answer to the UTU — is provided at www.utu.org (by clicking on “Designated Legal Counsel” under “About UTU”), or a listing may be obtained from local union officers or your general chairpersons.

As the AAR has confirmed, the FELA saves employee lives.

To view the AAR presentation, click here. The presentation is a Microsoft Powerpoint slide show and that software is required to view the presentation.

DENVER — “I will not stand down, I will not retreat and I will not surrender until our members have the right to vote on their own constitution,” UTU International President Mike Futhey told some 700 cheering UTU officers and members here at a regional meeting in explaining his position on the court-sidetracked merger with the Sheet Metal Workers International Association (SMWIA).

Futhey’s comments came during his first state of the union message since taking office Jan. 1.

He said the finances of the UTU, the United Transportation Union Insurance Association (UTUIA) and the UTU Discipline Income Protection Plan (DIPP) are showing improvement owing to internal cost cutting and new efficiencies, increased revenue and less aggressive disciplinary actions by carriers.

Futhey pledged to devote every resource at the UTU’s disposal to assuring the November election of Barack Obama and other labor-friendly candidates.

In regard to the SMWIA merger — currently halted by a federal court-imposed preliminary injunction — Futhey said he never opposed the merger. In fact, he voted for it.

But after learning that the “merger promised” wasn’t the merger to be delivered, Futhey demanded — as the federal court subsequently suggested — that a merged-union constitution be written and submitted to the UTU membership for approval.

“I was all for the merger that promised craft and general committee autonomy,” Futhey said. Then, before taking office, Futhey heard former UTU President Paul Thompson tell a UTU gathering that an intent of the merger was to subvert union democracy and “get accomplished what couldn’t be accomplished through democratic procedures” — specifically, an end to the UTU’s long and cherished craft and general committee autonomy.

At that point, Futhey said, he realized that he, and all other UTU members, had been misled — that the promise of the UTU constitution being inserted, intact, into the SMWIA constitution was a sham.

“I want the merger promised me, promised the UTU board of directors and promised UTU members,” Futhey said. To accomplish that, “let’s get a constitution written, put it out to our members, and let our members decide if the constitution written is the one they want.”

Futhey said he had several meetings with SMWIA General President Mike Sullivan to discuss the writing of a constitution for the merged union. Such a constitution has not yet emerged.

In regard to seven members of the UTU Board of Directors who seek, through SMWIA-financed court action, to force the merger’s implementation without an approved constitution, Futhey said he “never asked [them] to change their position. This is a democratic union and they have a right to say what they want to say.” Their appeal of the preliminary injunction is currently pending before the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Chief among the UTU successes in 2008, Futhey said, is a ratified and signed national rail contract reached by the negotiating team “that is superior to the agreement the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen got for their members.”

Futhey also cited recent Bus Department agreements as among “the strongest in the nation,” and praised a new Amtrak agreement that preserves the jobs of all assistant conductors.

“We know workers can do better and we are proving it every day on behalf of our members,” Futhey said, pointing to the UTU’s ramp-up of organizing efforts.

By training UTUIA field representatives in organizing, the UTU added 13 new organizers without increasing costs, Futhey said. “Whether it is eight new members in Alabama, or 800 new members in Orange County, California, we are going to organize them and represent them.”

Futhey also cited, as a recent success, the start-up of a UTU University, whose objectives are to make precedential arbitration awards easier to access and use; create a Web-based communications system tying locals, general committees, state legislative offices and the International together; and provide new Web-based training tools to assist local and general committee officers and legislative directors in serving members more effectively.

Turning to finances, Futhey said the UTU general fund balance has increased substantially following Headquarters consolidation and efficiency improvements, and more effective use of fewer International officers.

“No longer do we have vice presidents with their feet propped up,” Futhey said. “We have VPs out there working, and we have eliminated a vice president of administration,” with that work now accomplished by Assistant President Arty Martin and General Secretary & Treasurer Kim Thompson.

Thompson already has moved to Cleveland — as has Futhey — and Martin is in the process of moving to Cleveland.

Futhey said the UTUIA has increased its sales and turned a profit during the first quarter of 2008.

In coming weeks, Futhey promised to coordinate a strategy using the UTU PAC, state legislative directors, the UTU Auxiliary, UTU for Life, UTU communications channels and International officers to help elect Barack Obama president, increase the labor-friendly majorities of the House and Senate, and elect more labor-friendly legislators at the state level.

“I will not stand down, I will not retreat and I will not surrender until our members have the right to vote on their own constitution,” says UTU International President Mike Futhey in Denver July 9.