WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court will hear an argument by CSX in 2011 challenging standards for rail workers bringing lawsuits under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA), reports Bloomberg. The decision could affect future FELA cases. The specific case to be heard, [...]
WASHINGTON — Long term federal unemployment benefits expired Dec. 1 for hundreds of thousands of jobless as the lame-duck Congress failed to take action to extend them. Millions more will lose benefits if Congress does not act. Federal unemployment benefits had begun af [...]
WASHINGTON – When the lame-duck Congress returns to the House and Senate floors Monday, Nov. 29, they will have until midnight Tuesday to prevent a lapse in federal long-term unemployment benefits. If lawmakers in the House and Senate do not extend those federal unemployment [...]
WASHINGTON — The outgoing chairman of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee – Jim Oberstar (D-Minn.), who was defeated in the Nov. 2 elections – fears increased polarization along party lines when the new Congress is seated in January. In an interview [...]
Comparing embryo high-speed rail projects with the birth of the Interstate Highway system more than half-a-century ago, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said last week that the competition America is facing is not between Democrats and Republicans, but “between the U [...]
By James Stem,UTU National Legislative Director With the election over, change has come to Washington. Since 2001, the congressional political majority has shifted three times. New majorities are nothing new to our UTU legislative team. While most UTU-endorsed candidates were [...]
WASHINGTON — Rep. Nick Rahall (D-W.Va.), a long-time friend of the UTU, will be the ranking Democrat on the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee when the new Congress is seated in 2011. With the defeat Nov. 2 of Rep. Jim Oberstar (D-Minn.), who had been c [...]
WASHINGTON — In a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) published in the Nov. 10 Federal Register, the Federal Railroad Administration proposes to make Jan. 1, 2012, the effective date for implementation of conductor certification. The rulemaking on principles, elements [...]
WASHINGTON — One of first transportation challenges for federal rail transportation-project advocates — Democrats and Republicans — in the new Congress in 2011 will be how to preserve and allocate seed money for rail transit and high-speed rail projects. Bil [...]
By International President Mike Futhey What do the Nov. 2 congressional election results mean for UTU members and their families? Consider these facts that are not always obvious: While it is true that organized labor has more friends among Democrats, many of the Republicans [...]