SMART Transportation Division Members Ratify New Five-Year Agreement with 18.77% Wage Increases and Enhanced Benefits

October 30, 2025

Home>News>Transportation>National Rail Contract>SMART Transportation Division Members Ratify New Five-Year Agreement with 18.77% Wage Increases and Enhanced Benefits

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 30, 2025 – Independence, OH

SMART-TD members on Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF), Norfolk Southern (NS), Canadian National (CN), and several Class II and Class III railroads have voted to ratify a new, five-year collective bargaining agreement that delivers substantial economic gains and key benefit improvements — without any concessions. The agreement was approved by nearly 70% of voting members, reflecting significant support for the new contract.

Under the terms of the agreement, members will receive compounded wage increases of 18.77% over a five-year period. The first wage increase of 4.0% will be applied retroactively to July 1, 2025, with full back pay. The agreement also strengthens medical, dental, and vision benefits, and includes improved vacation benefits to improve quality of life for members and their families.

“This contract represents a solid victory for our members,” said SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson. “We secured real wage growth, protected our work rules and crew consist agreements, enhanced our benefits, and achieved these gains without giving up a single concession or protection. Our members stood together and recognized the value and importance of this agreement, and it paid off.”

Negotiations between SMART-TD and the participating railroads took place over approximately nine months, culminating in a tentative agreement that was reached in early October. The high level of voter turnout and the results underscore the membership’s confidence in SMART-TD’s bargaining team and satisfaction with what was achieved at the table.

“In the near future, we hope to reach similar tentative agreements with unratified railroads that chose not to participate in this national agreement” added President Ferguson. “All SMART-TD members should be entitled to the benefits and wage increases we gained in this agreement, not just those who happen to work for a railroad signatory to this contract.”

The new contract went into effect immediately on Wednesday, October 29, 2025, at midnight when votes were tabulated, and its moratorium will remain in place until January 1, 2030.

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For more information or to connect with SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson or a member of his staff, please contact:

Dan Banks
dbanks@smart-union.org 
(216) 227-5283 (Office) 
(330) 322-5949 (Cell) 

Alyssa Hansen
alyssa.hansen@smart-union.org