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NMB logo; National Mediation BoardWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama last week re-nominated three individuals to serve on the National Mediation Board, which administers the Railway Labor Act affecting railroads and airlines.

Nominees Harry Hoglander and Linda Puchala are current members of the board. The third nominee is Nicholas C. Geale, a Republican staff member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

Hoglander, an attorney and NMB member since 2002, previously was a senior staff member for former House member John Tierney (D-Mass), an executive vice president of the Air Line Pilots Association, an airline captain flying for TWA, and a U.S. Air Force pilot.

Puchala, an NMB member since 2009, previously was an NMB mediator and International President of the Association of Flight Attendants.

Prior to his work with the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Geale was an attorney in the Labor Department.

Democrats Hoglander and Puchala hold expired seats on the board and await Senate reconfirmation. The law permits NMB members to continue serving, following expiration of their term, until a successor is confirmed or they are reconfirmed.

President Obama previously nominated Geale on Dec. 17, 2012. Because the Senate failed to act on his nomination prior to Dec. 31, the president had to make new nominations when the new Congress was seated in 2013.

If confirmed Geale will succeed Republican Elizabeth Dougherty, who resigned in July 2012 following expiration of her second term. Obama nominated Republican Thomas Beck to succeed Dougherty, but after the Senate failed to hold a confirmation hearing on his nomination, he withdrew his name.

Typically, Republican and Democratic nominees are paired for confirmation.

The SMART Transportation Division’s CSX B&O General Committee (GO 049) has reached agreement with Bombardier Transit Services on a new contract for employees who will operate the Maryland to Washington commuter service known as MARC.

A new agreement is required due to the selection of Bombardier to operate the service after CSX announced it would not renew its current contract with the agency. 

The new agreement will provide wages and working conditions very similar to those enjoyed by our members who currently operate the service under the CSX collective bargaining agreement. Bombardier will accept applications for employment from CSX employees, with first priority given to those who are currently operating the service, followed by those who are qualified but not currently assigned to the service, and finally to all CSX employees on the Northern Mid Atlantic seniority roster.

Bombardier will send invitation letters to the employees who are currently assigned or qualified to operate the service. All others who are interested in applying for employment should contact Bombardier directly.

A hiring pool will be created in the event that applications exceed the number of positions available at startup. CSX employees who accept employment with Bombardier will be placed on the new seniority roster in the same relative order as on the CSX roster. The terms and conditions for a leave of absence from CSX are still being negotiated.

The negotiating team was led by General Chairperson Steve Mavity, with the assistance of Assistant President/GS&T John Previsich, and included Vice Chairpersons Jeremy Ferguson and Jamie Modesitt.

“The team did an excellent job of securing National Agreement wages and working conditions for employees of the new operator,” said Previsich, who added, “this will protect current employees who choose to work for the new operator and, in addition, provide industry-standard wages and benefits for all future employees of the service.”

Bonnie Morr

As I work with our members from around the country I hear about struggles that we are facing.

Whether it is discipline where our members may be losing their jobs, or a legislative issue that will impact our work, the union voice is there. 

All of us deal with negotiations. Some negotiations are for our labor agreements, some are with our supervisors about which job I will have that day. Some negotiations deal with our pay claims, but whatever the situation, we are always negotiating.

There is nothing better or stronger than the collective voice. We have seen that around the country as we fight for the rights of workers, health and safety issues and pensions.

I am thankful that we have the union voice to get our message out and to let our voices be heard. If we did not have the union voice, things would be a lot different. The people would not be heard and our needs would go unmet.

Because we have the union voice, we can negotiate for things such as better working conditions, raises and time off.

I get calls from our membership asking about how we can assist them in various situations with the resources we have.

With the union voice I can reach out to many different areas, both in our organization and to other unions and government agencies to get the answers our members need and deserve.

When we come together we have the union voice and we are all stronger.

John Previsich

By John Previsich, Assistant President/General Secretary & Treasurer – 

Discipline’s roots in the rail industry reach back nearly 150 years. Following the Civil War, the industry was expanding at a breakneck speed, with Congress and the American public being hornswoggled on a continual basis by the robber barons of the day.

From the “every other tie” strategy of Union Pacific to Southern Pacific’s importation of Chinese laborers by the boatload, the railroads were in a race for territory that required not only the rapid expansion of employees and track, but also the need for experienced managers at every level.

Where, in that era, could a company find management expertise that was familiar with a widely spread work force that was largely self-supervised while in the field? There was really only one source and, interestingly enough, that source fit almost perfectly into the requirements of the time.

The country was awash with ex-military personnel newly released from their Civil War obligations, both enlisted men and officers, most of whom were looking for work anywhere they could find it. Once hired into the railroad industry, the new employees helped to define discipline and labor practices that mirrored those of their former military careers and that continue to influence railroad labor relations into the modern era.

The “command and control” environment implemented by the railroads adopted the terms general manager and general chairman (authority figures similar to a military officer), investigations and hearings (court martial), firings and dismissal (dishonorable discharge).

Such procedures were intended to provide an orderly process for fair handling of employee issues, but instead they proved to be a poor substitute for due process, and employees were too often on the receiving end of unfair and discriminatory job practices. Consequently, it wasn’t long before the employees’ fraternal associations blossomed into full-fledged collective bargaining organizations.

The unions fought long and hard from the waning years of the 19th century all of the way through World War I to obtain the collective bargaining rights to which our members were entitled and the due- process handling of discipline and grievances they deserved.

Such battles promoted an adversarial relationship between the employees and railroad, with unfair labor practices and service interruptions a common occurrence.

The railroads were the primary mode of transport for people and goods in that era and such interruptions had an enormous impact on the economic vitality of the country and the day-to-day convenience of the newly prosperous and mobile population.

As a result, the voting population grew weary of the continual turmoil and demanded that something be done to stabilize the industry.

During that era, unlike today, when the voters spoke Congress listened. The result, passed in 1926, was the Railway Labor Act, the law that to this day still governs the handling of disputes in our industry.

In my next column, we will explore the relevance of the Railway Labor Act to modern times and how it affects our members in today’s world.

To read Brother Previsich’s earlier article on discipline, go to www.utu.org and click on “Leadership Messages.”

The Association of American Railroads has issued a safety alert for all railroads in North America.

The safety alert is to advise of the recent discovery of barbed wire found on safety appliances of a multilevel car.

This photograph was taken in the Quebec City, Quebec, area on March 26.

“Please distribute this information to coworkers, contractors, customers and all personnel who deal with these types of cars,” said James P. Grady, AAR assistant vice president for technical services.

 

The Obama Administration strongly opposes H.R. 1120, which would prohibit members of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) duly appointed by the president from taking any action.

If the president is presented with legislation that would undermine the functions of the National Labor Relations Board, his senior advisors will recommend that he veto the bill.

H.R. 1120 was introduced March 13 by Rep. David P. Roe (R-Tenn.) and has 25 co-sponsors.

The Obama administration said “This legislation hurts middle-class and working families, weakens the economy and undermines America’s economic competitiveness.

“H.R. 1120 would needlessly place the rights of millions of American workers in jeopardy and erode financial security and economic opportunity for middle class and working families. The National Labor Relations Act charges the NLRB with preventing and remedying unfair labor practices and defending the right of employees to join a union and bargain collectively with their employers.

“These protections are fundamental to growing the economy and creating jobs from the middle class out by ensuring better wages and working conditions for American workers and an open, fair, and prosperous economy for all.

“The Administration rejects the premise of this legislation, as the NLRB properly continues to act while courts resolve legal challenges to the President’s recess appointments, which the Administration believes are valid and constitutional.

“By depriving the NLRB of statutory authority, H.R. 1120 would compromise the President’s constitutional authority to make recess appointments.

“The legislation poses additional constitutional concerns because it would effectively remove the President’s recess appointees from office, authority that resides with the President. Rather than attempting to pass unfounded legislation such as H.R. 1120, the Congress should swiftly confirm the President’s nominees to the Board, which would resolve a situation that is of the Congress’s own making.”

UTU Golf Outting; Golf Outting; GolferAll railroaders and their friends and relatives are invited to participate in the 12th Annual FSC Rail Classic golf tournament at 1 p.m. Monday, May 6, at Sierra Lakes Golf Course in Fontana, Calif., according to Local 240 Chairperson Harry J. Garvin Jr.
The cost of the four-person scramble, shotgun-start tournament is $75 per person and includes a tri-tip barbecue, great prizes and great fun.
At least one member of each foursome must be a railroader.
Participants should commit and remit to Frank Carmona at 30250 Pebble Beach Dr., Sun City, CA 92586, by April 15. Contact Carmona at (951) 301-6525, (909) 770-3366 or by email at FSCRail@hotmail.com.
The tournament is sponsored Carmona’s Collision Repair.

The Federal Railroad Administration is currently managing a comprehensive planning effort to define, evaluate and prioritize future levels of investment in the Northeast Corridor (NEC) through 2040.

This effort, launched in February 2012 and called NEC FUTURE, will produce a Service Development Plan that articulates the overall scope, alternatives and approach for proposed improvements, and a Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement that evaluates and identifies ways to address broad, corridor-wide environmental impacts due to these improvements.

This process is a federally-required step before major construction to overhaul the corridor’s aging, unreliable, and congested infrastructure can begin.

 View the FRA’s NEC FUTURE Preliminary Alternatives Report.

 

The Obama Administration yesterday released its budget request for fiscal year 2014 and the President has once again put forth a plan for transforming and expanding train service in the United States.

The president is requesting $40 billion in passenger rail investment over the next five years, allocating $6.6 billion to the Federal Rail Administration for fiscal 2014, with increasing amounts each subsequent year through 2019.

“A well-functioning transportation system is critical to America’s economic future. Whether it is by road, transit, air, rail, pipeline, or waterway, Americans rely on our transportation system to move people and goods safely, facilitate commerce, attract and retain businesses, and support jobs,” the administration said in the budget request.

The request for $40 billion over five will fund the development of high-speed rail and other passenger rail programs as part of an integrated national transportation strategy.

This system will provide 80 percent of Americans with convenient access to a passenger rail system, featuring high-speed service, within 25 years.

The proposal also benefits freight rail and significantly restructures Federal support for Amtrak, to increase transparency, accountability, and performance.

The request will be a boost for Amtrak, coming a day before the House Committee on Transportation holds a hearing on the railroad’s FY 2014 budget.

The hearing, Amtrak’s Fiscal Year 2014 Budget: The Starting Point for Reauthorization [which will be streamed live], will address Amtrak’s funding needs, as well as the coming rail reauthorization (the current law will expire at the end of this September).

Amtrak announced April 9 it had set a new ridership record during the first half of this fiscal year, and will be looking to translate its steady increase in popularity into an increase its funding for badly needed equipment purchases and infrastructure upgrades. 



Passage of a reauthorization bill this year is uncertain, but the appropriations committees will determine how much federal funding each program gets.

Secretary LaHood is scheduled to appear before the House Appropriations transportation subcommittee on April 16.

President Obama’s $6.6 billion request breaks down in the following ways:

• $2.7 billion for “Current Passenger Rail Service,” including $800 million for Amtrak’s long-distance routes, $300 million for state corridors, $675 million for the Northeast Corridor and $925 million for “national assets” (defined as positive train control for passenger rail, rail stations, and “backbone rail facilities).”

• $3.7 billion for “Rail Service Improvement Program.” The budget request defines goals for the program as “Creating or improving passenger corridors, mitigating congestion bottlenecks in the rail system, improving intermodal freight rail capacity and comprehensive future planning.”

President Obama has put forth similar proposals in the past, and the biggest obstacle to implementing the program remains identifying new sources of funding.

The Administration identifies the “peace dividend” — money saved from drawing down the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq — as a major source of funding. However, House Republicans have rejected this proposal in its previous iterations. 



The Administration is proposing that rail funding become part of the Highway Trust Fund (it would be repurposed into a “Transportation Trust Fund”). This would eliminate Amtrak’s dependence on the annual appropriations cycle, moving it a grant structure similar to highways and transit.

Osawatomie’s Railroad Day will honor the contributions of current and former employees of Union Pacific and Missouri Pacific railroads in Osawatomie, Kan., April 20.
A variety of fun family activities are scheduled at Osawatomie’s Missouri Pacific Railroad Depot Museum, located at 628 Main St. The Railroad Day Museum Expo will run from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and feature information displays from area railroad museums and special displays of railroad artifacts.
Osawatomie’s Railroad Day honors the hard work and sacrifices of the community’s Union Pacific and Missouri Pacific Railroad employees and retirees and their contributions to the community’s spiritual, cultural and economic development.
For more information, visit the John Brown Museum State Historic Site’s page on Facebook.