Since 1998, trains coming across the Mexican border to the United States in Laredo, Texas, have been run by non-FRA-certified foreign national crews from Mexico. These foreign crews have been taking trains into Port Laredo, where they receive an initial Class I inspection and [...]
“Our rail members from BNSF properties definitely had their voices heard in this process and they should be proud to see their fingerprints throughout this outstanding TA. They were very clear that they wanted a level of predictability for when their time off would be honored [...]
It’s easy to levy criticism at the training programs run by the railroad carriers in 2023. But as we all know, criticism is meaningless without action. SMART Transportation Division is doing more than talking about the decline in the quality and quantity of training new hire [...]
Brothers and sisters — As the strike action of our brothers and sisters at the UAW moves forward, I wanted to reach out to all SMART-TD members and reiterate our support for the UAW and the goals they are working to achieve. On Thursday, I reached out to our rail members to l [...]
Brothers and sisters — The SMART Transportation Division stands in solidarity with our brothers and sisters at the United Auto Workers (UAW). As railroaders, we are acutely aware of how it feels to be in their situation. It does not take much of an effort to remember when we [...]
Phone: (216) 228-9400 Fax: (216) 228-0411 Department Email: news_td@smart-union.org “Any time a monopoly is broken up, and competition is emphasized in the workplace, American workers win. SMART-TD stands behind today’s announcement by the Surface Transportation Board. It is [...]
Brothers and sisters, For many Americans, Labor Day simply signifies the end of summer, beginning of the school year or is viewed as a day off from work. For those of us involved in organized labor, it means more. However, and whenever you are able to celebrate Labor Day, I a [...]
“I’ve got two conductor trainees, both in the same state working for the same carrier whose lives have been cut short. The current condition of all railroad training programs is clearly in need of scrutiny. SMART-TD is not prepared to lose more of our men and women while we s [...]
The SMART Transportation Division would like to thank all our members who have been filling out the safety forms when PTC doesn’t work as intended, when long trains make handheld radios useless, when signals drop out and when a DP units fail and there’s a mile of cars between [...]
The International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers’ Transportation Division (SMART-TD) is standing with its fellow rail labor union, the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division (BMWED), in its lawsuit against BNSF Railway. The [...]