News Archive
Two TD members lose children in tragic incidents
Two SMART Transportation Division members and their local union brothers and sisters are in mourning after two sudden and untimely deaths. Local 1565 member Laura Corley lost her son, Joey Trianders Allen, 43, of Lancaster, Calif., after police said a wrong-way driver slammed [...]
Washington State Senate passes two-person crew bill
SMART Transportation Division Washington State Legislative Director Herb Krohn reports that, despite a last-ditch effort by Senate Minority Leader Mark Schoesler to quash it, the two-person freight crew legislation bill passed through the state Senate by a 34-15 vote. Schoesl [...]
Breaking: Construction Industry Exempted From IRAPs
Brothers and sisters, Our collective actions in support of exempting the construction industry from Industry Recognized Apprenticeship Programs (IRAPs) made a difference. In 2017, the Trump Administration issued Executive Order No. 13801 seeking to establish a Task Force on A [...]
Rail unions urge FRA to act regarding spread of coronavirus
CLEVELAND, Ohio (March 6) — SMART Transportation Division (SMART-TD) and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) jointly petitioned the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) on March 6 to take action in responding to the rapidly spreading COVID-19 (coronav [...]
TD president’s letter seeks NCCC’s clarification on industry’s approach to coronavirus
The SMART-Transportation Division has reached out to the chairman of the National Carriers’ Conference Committee (NCCC) seeking answers as to what the rail industry’s response would be to the spread of the COVID-19 respiratory illness, especially when considering the strict a [...]
Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Bill Passed to Address Emergency Preparedness
On February 24, the Trump Administration requested $2.5 billion from Congress in emergency funding to address the COVID-19 pandemic. At the end of the process, the bill came to $7.8 billion in emergency spending with the bulk of funding to Health and Human Services and Cente [...]Disaster relief contributions needed after killer storm
The SMART Transportation Division is primed to assist members in their time of need when disaster strikes. The deadly tornadoes this week in Tennessee affected a number of families and TD members may be among those whose lives have been devastated by the killer storms that cl [...]
Registration is open for southwestern hazmat training
The Rail Workers Hazardous Materials Training Program has opened registration for a hazmat/chemical emergency response training program in April for rail workers in Arizona, western New Mexico, southeastern California and the Navajo Nation. This training addresses OSHA- and D [...]