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Sheet metal and transportation workers exercised collective power to win laws and federal appointees who act in our interests

After extraordinary mobilization in recent years, union votes are translating directly to union jobs.

In 2020, SMART members voted to elect politicians to the United States House, Senate and the White House who pledged to prioritize union members and working-class families. In the years since, those politicians passed three job-creating laws — the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act — and President Joe Biden named a variety of pro-union appointees to federal positions in the Department of Labor (DOL), the Department of Transportation and beyond — making sure money from federal laws creates jobs for SMART members, both now and into the future

This is not the result of politicians rewarding SMART members for getting them elected. It is the consequence of members applying their collective power: first by voting in their interests, then by pushing legislators to make sure they kept their promises.

“It can’t be emphasized enough what a difference it makes when the people implementing funding and writing policy know that SMART workers are engaged in the political process,” said SMART General President Michael Coleman. “We have pro-union allies in federal offices that are making sure that new laws create jobs for our members.”

Funding from recently passed laws, coupled with federal appointees, leads directly to union sheet metal jobs

Some projects funded by federal legislation have already started bringing SMART members onto the jobsite. In Arizona, for example, SM Local 359 members are on the job building semiconductor manufacturing facilities for Intel — a project made possible in part by funding from the CHIPS and Science Act.

Other projects will break ground in the near future. The CHIPS Act is set to put East Coast SMART members to work for years to come: Thanks to a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the U.S. Department of Commerce and semiconductor manufacturer GlobalFoundries that includes approximately $1.5 billion in direct funding, Local 83 sheet metal workers will soon arrive on a new, PLA-covered chip plant in Malta, New York. And in Burlington, Vermont, retrofit work on an existing GlobalFoundries chip plant is expected to exceed $35 million in federal funding, making the job a PLA-covered one and bringing Local 17 members on site.

Pro-union laws are one thing, but the people implementing those laws play a vital role after legislation is passed — and the federal appointees who make key funding and policy decisions are benefiting SMART members and their families across the country. The most high-profile figures work within the DOL. Since their appointments, Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su and DOL Wage and Hour Division Administrator Jessica Looman have successfully enacted rulemaking that expands job opportunities and puts money in SMART members’ pockets.

The primary example: Su, Looman and fellow pro-worker officials finally updated the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts, strengthening prevailing wage regulations and raising pay standards for SMART members and building trades workers across America. The updated regulations restore the DOL’s definition of prevailing wage — making it equivalent to the wage paid to at least 30% of workers in local communities (rather than the weakened 50%) — strengthen enforcement and modernize DOL’s definition of “site of the work” to account for current industry practices.

This rule update is particularly crucial at a time when publicly funded projects are breaking ground at an unprecedented rate, explained Coleman.

“By updating Davis-Bacon prevailing wage regulations for the first time in more than 40 years, the Department of Labor is working to ensure that construction workers employed on public works projects are paid what they deserve, helping lift more workers into the middle class and boosting the economies in cities, towns and neighborhoods from coast to coast,” he said. “This is especially vital as projects funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act continue breaking ground — putting thousands of SMART members to work.”

Pro-union FRA notches slew of victories for SMART-TD members

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) of 2016–2020 made its name through anti-worker actions, most notably its attempt to pre-empt existing state laws that mandated two-person crews on freight trains. The post-2020 FRA, led by Administrator Amit Bose, has consistently prioritized the wellbeing of SMART-TD members — the workers who actually keep the trains moving, not the corporate CEOs who cast safety to the side in pursuit of shareholder profit.

In striking contrast to the previous administration, the current FRA announced a federal two-person crew rule in 2024, finally acting in the name of common sense, worker safety and SMART-TD railroad jobs. Following a public comment period that was extended multiple times, ultimately concluding in late 2022, the final ruling arrived in April 2024.

In late 2023, in the wake of high-profile rail safety incidents and two tragic trainee deaths, the FRA awarded SMART-TD more than $600,000 to develop and implement its own training program — providing union railroaders with education and programming designed with their safety in mind, not just efficiency and exorbitant profit-making.

Weeks later, the FRA again sided with railroaders over the carriers in its ruling on Union Pacific’s request for a variance to allow non-FRA-certified crews to run trains coming from Mexico to Port Laredo, Texas. FRA ruled that trains running from the border to Port Laredo must be operated by qualified and certified Union Pacific engineers and conductors, providing SMART-TD railroaders with the work they rightfully deserve.

Bose’s administration made another common-sense decision in favor of SMART-TD railroaders with the issuing of a final rule on emergency breathing apparatuses on trains carrying hazardous material. The rule requires railroads to provide emergency escape breathing apparatuses (EEBAs) for train crew members and other employees who could be exposed to an inhalation hazard in the event of a hazardous material, or hazmat, release. Railroads must also ensure that the equipment is maintained and in proper working condition and train their employees in its use.

And in a groundbreaking move that will put SMART-TD railroaders to work for years to come, the FRA awarded billions of dollars in funding — made available by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law — to two high-speed rail projects in California and Las Vegas, finally making high-speed rail a reality in the U.S. The crucial provision: The railroad, Brightline West, committed to using an organized workforce. The railroad will be built by union members, including SMART Railroad, Mechanical and Engineering workers, and the highspeed trains will be operated by SMART-TD crews.

“The skills our conductors, engineers and yardmasters possess were not an afterthought when the plans for this rail line came together,” SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson said when the projects were announced. “They are invaluable to this project and woven into the fabric of what will make this high-speed rail project a success.”

Department of Energy’s clean energy industrial policy creates years of work for SMART members

The need for a clean energy transition has been made abundantly clear in recent years, as temperatures increase, seasons disappear, floods destroy city streets and wildfire smoke chokes our children when they try to play outside. Thanks to the industrial policy of the current Department of Energy (DOE), that clean energy transition is creating jobs for SMART sheet metal members — today, tomorrow and well into the future.

Examples are everywhere. SMART Local 177 members have begun working on a Microvast battery plant in Clarksville, Tennessee, while Local 36 members in St. Louis, Missouri, are on the job building an ICL-IP America, Inc., battery materials manufacturing facility. Both projects received DOE funding from $2.8 billion worth of awards from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

Meanwhile, the sheet metal workers at Local 7 (Lansing, Michigan), Local 20 (New Carlisle, Indiana) and Local 177 (Spring Hill, Tennessee) are directly benefiting from the Department of Energy’s $2.5 billion loan to Ultium Cells. The loan, facilitated by the DOE’s Loan Programs Office, is helping finance the construction of new lithium-ion battery cell manufacturing plants in Michigan, Indiana and Tennessee, as well as Ohio — facilities that have Local 7, 20 and 177 members already on site.

The DOE Loan Programs Office also played a crucial role in putting SMART Local 110 and Local 4 members to work in Glendale, Kentucky, and Stanton, Tennessee, respectively. Ford received a $9.2 billion loan that helped kickstart its BlueOval battery facilities in both locations, and the funding has already paid dividends for union sheet metal workers — generating work for current members, bringing new workers into the union, helping both locals grow and keeping retirees’ pensions healthy.

And on the West Coast, the recently announced California Hydrogen Hub — one of seven hydrogen hubs funded by DOE through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law — will leverage the state’s existing clean energy technology to produce hydrogen exclusively from renewable energy and biomass. Importantly, the hub has committed to requiring project labor agreements for all related projects, which will create an expected 220,000 jobs — including 130,000 construction jobs.

The SMART Transportation Division began a new era in rail safety and worker protection by working with Norfolk Southern to accept and act on anonymous safety reports.

How It Works

The one-year pilot program, called the Confidential Close Call Reporting System (C3RS), is similar to one that airline personnel use to hold their airlines accountable. Rail workers will share safety concerns through a secure website. NASA, acting as an independent party, will organize, anonymize and share the reports with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). Under FRA guidance, improvements will be made by a joint committee including SMART-TD and other rail labor representatives, as well as Norfolk Southern management.

A Long Time Coming

C3RS first came to the rail industry in 2007, when SMART-TD predecessor United Transportation Union (UTU) and Union Pacific (UP) participated in an early version, running until 2013. They piloted the system in Bailey Yard, North Platte, Nebraska, the largest rail yard in the world. The program was highly successful: It increased safety and reduced critical incidents and rule violations. The program also greatly decreased employee discipline. Other Class III and passenger rail carriers began to benefit from the system around the same time.

The program requires voluntary agreement among the rail carrier, labor and the federal government. Despite its success, UP refused to renew the program, effectively killing it. SMART-TD has engaged in an ongoing effort to reintroduce the program at all Class I carriers.

We Have Only Begun to Fight

After our 17-year effort, Norfolk Southern (NS) decided to take the lead on rail safety, and this C3RS agreement shows that CEO Alan Shaw is serious in his commitment to making NS the safest railroad by partnering with rail labor. SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson and General Chairpersons Tommy Gholson, James Ball, David Phillips, Dan Weir and Joe Borders began making real progress with NS executives in 2023, resulting in a signed agreement on February 15, 2024.

“For years we’ve watched the successes of the several shortlines that have practiced under C3RS, and because of that, for years, we’ve long been advocates,” said Gholson, who was instrumental in negotiating the pilot program.

Gholson also praised the efforts of the four other general chairpersons for their roles in constructing the C3RS framework. Alternate National Legislative Director Jared Cassity provided leadership by being a facilitator in the process and coordinating with the FRA.

SMART-TD: Out in Front

In a speech soon after the agreement’s signing, Ferguson said: “Rail labor has been out in front since the beginning. We have always advocated for the right to have a protected avenue to report safety concerns and injuries without fear of harassment, intimidation or retribution.

“For far too long, this nation’s rail carriers have been complacent with their approach to safety. Obviously, this is something that can’t be reversed overnight, but we are hopeful that the corrective process can begin with a program like C3RS.

“There is no higher priority for SMART-TD or the workers we represent than safety, not just for their own welfare but also for the communities in which they operate.”

SMART RME Director Peter Kennedy speaks on rail safety in front of a House roundtable.

SMART Rail, Mechanical and Engineering Department Director Peter Kennedy joined fellow rail workers and community witnesses to stand for rail safety during a roundtable hosted by Democratic members of the House Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials on Wednesday, March 13.

Kennedy – along with Vince Verna of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen; Mayor Frank Moran of Hiram, Ga. (the site of a 2021 derailment); East Palestine, Ohio resident Anna Sevi-Doss and others – testified to the devastating effects of deregulation on the railroad, and the need for Congress to pass the bipartisan Railway Safety Act.

“Everybody knows the story: rail safety has deteriorated under precision scheduled railroading [PSR],” Kennedy explained in his opening statement. “It’s nothing more than a cost-cutting business operating model that is founded upon the root of all evil, which is the love of money. The sole focus is to maximize profits for shareholders.”

Watch video of the House roundtable.

The Railway Safety Act was introduced in the wake of the East Palestine derailment and explosion in February 2023 by Senators Sherrod Brown and J.D. Vance of Ohio, Bob Casey and John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and by Representative Chris Deluzio in the House. However, amidst concentrated lobbying against the bill by the railroad carriers, there has been no progress made towards a full vote in either chamber.

Democratic Congressmembers Rick Larsen and Donald Payne, Jr. hosted the March 2024 roundtable – titled “Listening to Rail Workers and Communities” – to “help get rail safety legislation back on track,” according to Larsen.

“Simply put, what we are seeing today in the freight rail industry is efforts to take shortcuts on labor safety and service, all in the pursuit of profits, while we see bigger profits for the railroads – meaning more dividends for shareholders,” Payne said.

Reps. Larsen and Payne
Rep. Deluzio
Members of Congress listen to rail workers’ testimony

Throughout the hearing, members of Congress, citizens and union leaders all described the fraught conditions that both workers and ordinary Americans experience as a result of deregulation and corporate greed. Kennedy outlined the adverse effects on safety, as well as shippers and the industry as a whole, that occur when the carriers cut services and equipment maintenance. Even worse, he told subcommittee members, are the drastic workforce reductions in the industry.

“As Vince said, over 30% of the workforce has been eliminated. With respect to the Mechanical Department employees, 41% of the workforce has been eliminated since PSR,” Kennedy explained. “And what’s crazy is, the cuts are still happening.”

“It’s absolutely asinine,” he added. “There’s not enough workers to perform this critical safety work on locomotives and rail cars in this country. That’s what it boils down to.” 

The Railway Safety Act would implement a variety of safeguards to keep Americans and railroaders safe, including a nationwide mandate for well-trained two-person crews on all freight trains; restrictions on train length and weight; regulations on the installation, frequency, upkeep and response to wayside defect detectors; and much more. SMART RME, TD and rail labor organizations throughout the country have urged lawmakers to pass these common-sense regulations in the 12-plus months since the bill’s introduction, as states including Minnesota, New York, Ohio and Kansas have themselves passed rail safety legislation.

“We need both sides of the aisle to make freight rail safety a priority,” Kennedy concluded. “We need meaningful change to the industry. We need Congress to act now, and I thank Ranking Members Larsen and Payne for hosting a roundtable discussion to discuss ongoing and unaddressed rail safety issues.”

The RSA, which was born from the East Palestine derailment and contains two-person crew language, cleared its first major hurdle today when it passed through the Senate’s Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. The bill’s passage through committee was not without controversy and fireworks, with a debate between two Republican Senators during a discussion of amendments. However, at the end of the meeting, the RSA was passed and now moves on to the Senate.  

As a rule, freshman legislators on every level are expected to spend their first year, if not their first term, being seen and not heard. There is a tremendous learning curve, and most are happy to take in all of the information and calibrate themselves before becoming vocal, especially when taking on the standard bearers of their own political parties.  

Unlike most other Senators, JD Vance (R-Ohio) had the luxury of a learning curve taken away from him by the derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. Like a first-round draft-pick quarterback who has to put down the clipboard and step into the game before planned, Vance was thrown into the middle of the action.  

Today – May 10, 2023 – Vance helped usher the Rail Safety Act of 2023 to a bipartisan 16-11 win in the Senate’s Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee.  

Vance’s opening statement in support of the bill came directly on the heels of longtime Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) pulling his support for the Vance/Brown Bill. In the face of this adversity, Vance came out swinging. Among other holes he poked in Cruz’s argument against the bill, he said: “We cannot on the one hand acknowledge that Ohio taxpayers and Ohio citizens are bearing the cost of this accident and on the other hand say that it’s ridiculous to require the railroad industry to do a little bit more on safety. They should be incurring some additional costs so that another East Palestine doesn’t happen again.” 

In a direct response to Cruz’s damnation of his bill as being too costly for railroads to be expected to pay for, Vance added: “Yes, it may make rail transportation a little bit more expensive. But it’s going to make rail transportation a little more expensive in the service of safety. Because let’s be honest. We have allowed the rail industry to socialize the risk of their business while privatizing the rewards. The people of East Palestine are going to deal with the cost of what Norfolk Southern did for the next generation.” 

When the hearing was opened for Senators to offer amendments to the bill, another institution of the Senate and Vance’s Republican party, John Thune (R-South Dakota), offered an amendment he claimed would alleviate the burden of Class II and Class III railroads. In his remarks, he more than suggested that other legislators aren’t in touch with rural/agricultural economies. In the face of the Thune amendment, Vance responded, “There are a number of agricultural communities small and big in the state of Ohio and a lot in East Palestine. They bear the cost when railways set off chemical bombs in their community – which is exactly what happened a couple of months ago. Those costs have been socialized onto Ohio and American taxpayers.” 

Following Vance’s comments, the Thune amendment was defeated. Shortly after that success, Vance and the Railway Safety Act of 2023 scored a huge win for rail labor with a 16-11 passage of the bill (without the rejected amendments proposed by Cruz and Thune). For his part in the day’s proceedings, the newcomer received accolades not often heard in the halls of the United States Senate.  

Senator Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) thanked Vance for his leadership and said that he was happy to lend his support to the legislation. Both Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) made a point to highlight Vance’s acumen. Chair Cantwell said of Vance that, “I have to say, sir, you’ve come to the Senate and you’ve hit the ground running. And I appreciate that because you are responding to a crisis that happened in your state and you’re responding on behalf of your citizens so that this doesn’t happen again.” 

It goes without saying that SMART Transportation Division is encouraged by the bipartisan effort it took to get the Rail Safety Act of 2023 through the Senate committee, and we hope the sentiment continues as the bill now proceeds to the Senate floor and then onto the House.  

Rail safety is not for sale. America’s rail workers need legislation to reverse the harmful trajectory of the industry and to protect the communities in which they operate. We thank Senators Vance and Schmitt for their support, as well as every Democratic Senator on the Senate Commerce Committee for fighting to protect our members. 

By Andy Hauck, Wisconsin SMART Transportation Division State Legislative Director

On February 1 in Washington, DC, the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee held its first meeting of the 118th congressional session, and one member in particular wasted no time in informing rail labor that our truths and issues make him uncomfortable and that we essentially need to sit down and shut up.

Wisconsin SLD Hauck

The meeting was called to address delays and obstacles in the nation’s supply chain and how the money allocated by President Biden and the outgoing Congress in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) should be used to address these problems. President Greg Regan of the AFL-CIO’s Transportation Trades Department (TTD) was the only voice of labor in this important conversation. The nation’s hugely profitable rail carriers were represented by Ian Jefferies of the Association of American Railroads (AAR). Representatives from the trucking industry, the port of Houston and a representative for corporate building contractors also took part.

Late in the hearing, Wisconsin Rep. Derrick Van Orden (a Jan. 6th-attendee-turned-U.S.-congressman) used his five minutes to ask softball questions to the industry reps before attempting to intimidate Regan, the sole labor representative.

AFL-CIO TTD President Regan

After being asked if he had any relation to former President Ronald Reagan (note the different spelling), TTD’s Regan chuckled and said, “No. He fired the air traffic controllers, and I have the privilege of representing them.” This light-hearted one-liner was quickly met with a response from Van Orden meant to put all of labor on notice. Van Orden said that he had read the written testimony offered by the AFL-CIO TTD — an umbrella organization representing hundreds of thousands of workers from nearly three dozen unions — and that he had some advice to offer: “Change your tone!”

Van Orden then went on to declare that while he is willing to work with anyone to solve problems, he didn’t appreciate the manner in which Regan stood up for all of us in the rail labor community. He was indicating to Regan and rail labor that he would not be moved by the ugly truths we have to share with him about the realities we face each day as workers in the industry. He was clearly offended by Regan’s audacity to point out in his written statement that rail carriers have been investing less into their own infrastructure since the onset of the job-cutting, profit-at-any-cost Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR) operating model – despite their record profits, which could have been used to enhance safety in the railroad industry.

Two days following this committee hearing, on Feb. 3, the world found out that the “tone” of Regan’s written comments was all too warranted. Roughly 52 hours after Rep. Van Orden’s blanket dismissal of Regan and rail labor’s concerns, Norfolk Southern train 32N left the rails in East Palestine, Ohio. Then, on April 27, the reality of Regan’s concerns hit a little closer to home for the first-term congressman.

Rep. Van Orden

In Ferryville, Wisconsin – in Van Orden’s home district – a BNSF train not only derailed, but two intermodal cars fell into the Mississippi River. Thankfully for all involved, this derailment did not result in a fiery hazmat spill like the horrific scene in February on the Ohio/Pennsylvania border. Yet the visual of the twisted cars in the water might be enough to give Rep. Van Orden a new perspective. If the cars that cascaded into the river had been among the many on that train that contain dangerous chemicals, it could have contaminated the water supply of communities from southwestern Wisconsin all the way to New Orleans, the Gulf of Mexico and beyond.

No one wants to see anything even close to that scale happen, but the drone footage of the derailment in Ferryville demonstrates the validity and well-warranted urgency Regan and all of rail labor possess when it comes to matters of public and worker safety.

When faced with the reality of the rail carriers’ disregard for rail safety, rail labor does not have the luxury of being diplomatic. If our urgency and sense of impending catastrophe is unsettling to those who read it, it is based on reality, not hyperbole, as evidenced by the ongoing concern for the long-term impacts of the East Palestine derailment in Ohio and the surrounding areas. There is no way that President Regan could have given the concerns of his rail members the credence they deserved politely or in a comforting tone. The reality is that such concerns need to be shouted, rather than whispered. If the members of Congress who received Regan’s written statement were startled by what they read, they absolutely should have been. It’s what the situation warrants.

But, with the large number of headline-grabbing rail accidents that have occurred since the committee hearing, including a major derailment in Rep. Van Orden’s backyard, the question becomes: Has the freshman congressman witnessed enough that he can see past the perceived tone of labor’s warnings regarding railroad safety to where he can recognize their merit? Can the freshman congressman appreciate the teamwork and structure (historically similar to the United States Military) that is required to move America forward?

The U.S. Senate currently has the Railway Safety Act of 2023 before it, bipartisan legislation sponsored by the senators of the states affected by the East Palestine derailment. Van Orden’s House of Representatives is also entertaining a companion piece of legislation but with important portions deleted, such as a measure that establishes a minimum two-person crew on freight trains and stops the industry’s attempts to run three-mile-long trains with just one person (or no one) on board.

The SMART Transportation Division, the nation’s largest freight railroad union, hopes that Rep. Van Orden can get on board with the provisions in this legislation and help to advocate for and pass unaltered the bill of Sens. Brown (D-Ohio), Vance (R-Ohio), Bob Casey (D-Pa.) and John Fetterman (D-Pa.) as they champion safety on America’s railroads. Considering his position on the House Transportation Committee, Van Orden’s support is of great importance.

Perhaps, after Rep. Van Orden heard rail labor’s concerns in February and witnessed the April 27th derailment in Ferryville, seeing will now result in believing for him.

Andy Hauck is a 28-year veteran of the Railroad industry and is the Wisconsin state legislative director for the SMART Transportation Division, a labor union comprised of approximately 125,000 active and retired members who work in a variety of different crafts in the transportation industry. These crafts include employees on every Class I railroad, Amtrak, many shortline railroads, bus and mass transit employees and airport personnel.

For ProPublica, a nonprofit newsroom, Topher Sanders and Dan Schwartz (ProPublica), Joce Sterman (Gray Television/InvestigateTV), Scotty Smith (Gray Television/InvestigateTV) (video) and Jamie Kelter (ProPublica) (photography) recently reported:

“Jeremiah Johnson couldn’t convince his mother to let him wear a suit, so he insisted on wearing his striped tie and matching pocket square. It was picture day and the third grader wanted to get to school on time. But as he and his mom walked from their Hammond, Indiana, home on a cold, rainy fall morning, they confronted an obstacle they’d come to dread:

“A sprawling train, parked in their path.

“Lamira Samson, Jeremiah’s mother, faced a choice she said she has to make several times a week. They could walk around the train, perhaps a mile out of the way; she could keep her 8-year-old son home, as she sometimes does; or they could try to climb over the train, risking severe injury or death, to reach Hess Elementary School four blocks away.

“She listened for the hum of an engine. Hearing none, she hurried to help Jeremiah climb a ladder onto the flat platform of a train car. Once up herself, she helped him scramble down the other side.

“ProPublica and InvestigateTV witnessed dozens of students do the same in Hammond, climbing over, squeezing between and crawling under train cars with “Frozen” and “Space Jam” backpacks. An eighth grade girl waited 10 minutes before she made her move, nervously scrutinizing the gap between two cars. She’d seen plenty of trains start without warning. ‘I don’t want to get crushed,’ she said.”

Read the full report here.

In the aftermath of February’s rail disaster in East Palestine, Ohio, the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee held a key hearing on March 22 on “Improving Rail Safety in Response to the East Palestine Derailment” to get to the bottom of what went wrong in the accident and to discuss the bipartisan Railway Safety Act of 2023.

The committee had an all-star cast of witnesses who testified, including two U.S. senators; Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine; East Palestine resident Misti Allison, who represented the community; National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy; David Comstock, chief of the Ohio Western Reserve Joint Fire District; Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw; Association of American Railroads (AAR) CEO Ian Jeffries and SMARTTD’s Ohio State Legislative Director (SLD) Clyde Whitaker. To begin the hearing, U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown and JD Vance kicked off the day explaining in detail the bill, S.B. 567, they’re putting forward.

Brown began his comments by thanking the witnesses for testifying and referred directly to SLD Whitaker, calling him “an unrelenting advocate for safe working conditions for his members and all people working in Ohio railroads.”

Brown then went on to discuss why this legislation is so necessary.

“Norfolk Southern followed the Wall Street business model,” he said. “Boost profits and stock price by eliminating, over the last decade, 38% of its workforce.”

WATCH: SMART-TD Ohio State Legislative Director Clyde Whitaker testified about rail safety issues before a U.S. Senate committee in March 2023.

He went on to describe Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR) perfectly, saying, “They cut cost to boost profits. The communities along their route be damned!”

Vance followed Brown, explaining that the intention of the bill is not to put the government in charge of day-to-day operations of America’s railroad companies (like the bill’s outspoken opponents would like the public to believe). He addressed the concern of the rail carriers who have made it known that they feel the legislation is an overreach by Congress, stating plainly: “You cannot on the one hand beg the government to bail you out of a labor dispute three months ago and then say that it’s ‘big government’ to have proper safety standards in the way that you conduct your railroads. It’s a ridiculous argument, and it doesn’t pass the smell test.”

Gov. DeWine followed the Buckeye State’s senators and weighed in heavily on behalf of the residents of East Palestine. He started by describing life as it was in the village of 4,700 leading up to events of Feb. 3, 2023. He walked the committee through the Norman Rockwellian Friday night where the community was keenly focused on the high school basketball game in progress until the unthinkable happened.

“Life stopped being normal for everyone in this community — it stopped feeling safe — when 38 cars of that Norfolk Southern freight train, carrying hundreds of thousands of pounds of hazardous materials, hurtled off the track. In an instant, life turned upside down,” he said.

DeWine went on to describe the tough questions facing residents of East Palestine revolving around their physical health as well as the viability of their community’s future. These points were driven home by witness Misti Allison. Allison, a resident of East Palestine for the last four years, was testifying in front of the Senate committee on behalf of her community. In her own words, her goal was “to put a face on this chemical disaster.”

In addition to emphasizing DeWine’s points in reference to the health concerns swirling around in East Palestine, she shared other details about a community shattered. Among the issues she brought to the committee’s attention were home equity of the residents, the viability of local businesses and the concerning contradictions in the results of various sources of environmental testing of air, water and soil samples.

From left, National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy; David Comstock, chief of the Ohio Western Reserve Joint Fire District; SMART-TD Ohio State Legislative Director Clyde Whitaker; Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw and Association of American Railroads CEO Ian Jefferies appear March 22 before the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee in a hearing regarding rail safety.
From left, National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy; David Comstock, chief of the Ohio Western Reserve Joint Fire District; SMART-TD Ohio State Legislative Director Clyde Whitaker; Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw and Association of American Railroads CEO Ian Jefferies appear March 22 before the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee in a hearing regarding rail safety.

The most telling and unique issue she brought to light was the still-developing mental and emotional health concerns of the community post-derailment. She pointed out the ramifications the derailment has had, especially among the youth of East Palestine, in her written testimony: “Kids are not allowed to play on the playground because it hasn’t been cleaned. So the kids now play a game they invented called ‘EVACUATION’ during recess. This train derailment has robbed our kids of their childhood, and perhaps more,” she said.

This imagery is powerful and takes the importance of the Railway Safety Act of 2023 out of the realm of financial ramifications and puts it squarely in the arena of human rights.

At the conclusion of Allison’s testimony, Brother Whitaker took the stage to speak our union’s truth directly to power. SLD Whitaker explained in detail the effects PSR has had on our industry from the ground level.

In July 2022, Whitaker filed a complaint with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) directly reporting that Norfolk Southern had been ordering their crews to disregard warnings from wayside defect detectors in his state and to keep their trains rolling after receiving alerts of hot bearings.

He informed the senators that he had personally cautioned the FRA months prior to the East Palestine derailment that carriers’ business practice and adherence to the PSR doctrine was putting our crews and communities in harm’s way.

“PSR has made the Class I railroads more than $160 billion in profit since 2015 while at the same time causing the greatest degradation of safety in modern-day railroading,” he said in his written testimony. “As we have all seen in East Palestine, this cut-your-way-to-profit model is not sustainable and it is very, very dangerous.”

He further emphasized the impact of PSR on safety by talking about the current state of safety inspections of rolling stock and maintenance of equipment.

“No longer is identifying defects the goal of inspections. Instead, the goal is to minimize the time it takes to perform them or the elimination of them altogether, so the trains keep moving,” he said. “Compound this with the fact that the railroads are on a determined course to grow these trains to astronomical lengths and you have a predictable outcome, and that outcome is East Palestine.”

"For us to get to this point that we could repeal right-to-work and get prevailing wage reinstated is a huge win for labor." — SMART Local 80 (Detroit) Business Manager Tim Mulligan Workers won a huge victory in Michigan in March 2023 month when the Democratic-controlled state legislature and governor kept their promises and repealed the state’s so-called right-to-work law, while also restoring prevailing wage legislation. Republicans passed right-to-work legislation in 2012, when they controlled state government. This forced unions to represent members who refused to pay union dues, and weakened our bargaining power. Since then, Michigan’s unionization rate has dropped significantly, and the state’s median wage has fallen below that of many other U.S. states. SMART members and union workers across Michigan worked tirelessly since 2012 to repeal the state’s right-to-work law.
Michigan Repeals Anti-worker “Right-to-Work” Law
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Michigan Repeals Anti-worker “Right-to-Work” Law

"I wasn't really sure what to expect. But after I got those first few paychecks as a second-year apprentice, my pay was about the same as I was making in the military as a specialist. And now that I'm a fourth-year apprentice, I'm making more than what I ever could have dreamed of." — Sean Thompson, SMART Local 66, Dupont, WA The SMART Heroes program graduated its 500th participant in March 2023, reaching this milestone in just over five years. The program provides accelerated sheet metal industry training, free of charge, to active-duty U.S. military men and women and recent veterans, helping them transition to family-sustaining, union careers once they leave military service. Learn more: https://www.smart-heroes.org
SMART Heroes, Veterans Celebrate 500th Grad Milestone
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SMART Heroes, Veterans Celebrate 500th Grad Milestone

"In those four cases, they found that [the owner of 360 Sheet Metal] owed over $200,000 in back wages to 20 workers and they assessed $115,000 in penalties for failing to pay prevailing wage in the shop." — Brian Noble, Business Manager, SMART Local 16 (Portland, Ore.) Wage theft and job misclassification are forms of exploitation that plague the construction industry, where far too many unscrupulous employers take advantage of employees. Across the United States and Canada, SMART is standing up for prevailing wages, battling wage theft and job misclassification, and helping workers get the pay and treatment they deserve. This video highlights recent victories by sheet metal workers in Washington state and Virginia.
Sheet Metal Union Wins Back Pay for Wage Theft, Job Misclassification
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Sheet Metal Union Wins Back Pay for Wage Theft, Job Misclassification

In a significant victory for SMART and freight rail safety, Ohio has become the ninth state to require a two-person crew on freight trains. The state legislation was passed on March 31, 2023. A few days before that bill was passed, SMART-TD Ohio State Legislative Director Clyde Whitaker testified before a U.S. Senate committee hearing that focused on conditions leading up to the February derailment and subsequent toxic chemical spills in East Palestine, Ohio, as well as the proposed Railroad Safety Act of 2023. "This derailment [in East Palestine] did not have to happen," said Whitaker. "And it makes it so much more frustrating for us to know that it was very predictable. And yet our warnings and cries for help over the last seven years have fallen on deaf ears. And the outcome was exactly as we feared. Now, the result is a town that doesn't feel safe in their own homes, businesses failing to survive and a railroad that prioritized its own movement of trains before the people in the community, as well as its workers." The committee also heard from Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, rail industry stakeholders and the state’s two U.S. Senators — Sherrod Brown and J.D. Vance. "Norfolk Southern followed the Wall Street business model: Boost profits and its stock price by eliminating over the last decade 38 percent of its workforce," said Sen. Brown. "These profits were spent on stock buybacks that benefit executives instead of iinvesting in workers and investing in safety. Instead, they compromise safety cut costs to boost profits, the communities along their route be damned View Whitaker's full testimony before the Senate committee here: https://youtu.be/kPQvTfk3Y8I
SMART-TD Testifies on Rail Safety, East Palestine at Senate Hearing
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SMART-TD Testifies on Rail Safety, East Palestine at Senate Hearing

As a result of massive investment and new megaprojects from companies like Intel, Honda and more – spurred in large part by federal legislation like the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act – the Ohio State Building and Construction Trades Council estimates that more than 115,000 union workers will work full time from 2023 to 2025. The enormous number of jobs on these projects opens a huge window of opportunity for sheet metal workers for years to come, for both current and future SMART members. North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU) highlighted these opportunities during a “Meeting the Moment” event in Columbus in March. The event featured leaders and members from across the trades. SMART Local 24 Journeyperson McKenzie Quinn joined elected officials and others to talk about one thing: The more than $155 billion worth of projects currently breaking ground in Ohio. "I am very excited about the big jobs that are coming up," said Quinn. "We have many opportunities that they offer for those who are willing to work, work hard and learn new skills."
Union Building Trades Highlight OH Megaprojects, Jobs
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Union Building Trades Highlight OH Megaprojects, Jobs

SMART Army activists with sheet metal and transportation locals across the United States and Canada rolled up their sleeves and mobilized to serve their communities throughout the month of April . We spoke with Johnny Walker, Secretary for the SMART-TD Maryland State Legislative Board, about work SMART members did at Curtis Bay Elementary School in Baltimore to help clear brush, put down mulch, clean up a garden area and paint inside the school. "It was overall a great opportunity for all of us to get together," said Walker, "and kind of take a break from what we do at transportation and, you know, really give back to the community." We also spoke with SMART Local 280 (British Columbia) Business Representative Jeff Lind and about how members of his local turned out for the Vancouver Steps For Life Walk, helping the event sponsors to raise a total of $66k towards helping families who have suffered a workplace tragedy.
April is SMART Army Month of Community Action
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April is SMART Army Month of Community Action

GP Sellers Reflects on SMART's Pension Progress
YouTube Video UExFekJDRUFvTFJZb0dMbHNpajd3aGZIRHF3ekVjaXllWS41MzJCQjBCNDIyRkJDN0VD

GP Sellers Reflects on SMART's Pension Progress

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SMART released the latest episode of SMART News on Tuesday, May 2. Episode eight features videos on organized labor’s success repealing so-called right-to-work in Michigan; SMART Heroes reaching the 500th graduate milestone; victories against wage theft in Virginia and Washington; SMART-TD’s rail safety efforts in the U.S. Senate; SMART members’ retirement security; and much more.

Watch individual videos from this episode:

SMART Local 80 Business Manager Tim Mulligan detailed the “travesty” of Michigan Republicans passing right-to-work legislation and taking prevailing wage away from union members in the Wolverine State; he also explained how organized labor worked with pro-worker elected officials to restore full collective bargaining power and prevailing wage in March of this year.

“Local 80, 7, 292 and actually our Transportation Division, we came together as one to get rid of right-to-work,” Mulligan told SMART News. “The repeal of right-to-work and the reinstatement of prevailing wage is so important for Michigan as a state.”

Later in the episode, International Training Institute Administrator Michael Harris and SMART Heroes graduates Kevin Moore and Sean Thompson spoke about the impact that SMART Heroes has had on their lives – as well as the other 500 military servicemembers and recent veterans the program has graduated over the last five years.

“I was honestly a little bit shocked at the level of camaraderie and brotherhood [in the union], that mimicked what I had in the [service],” said U.S. Army veteran Moore.

In other segments, SMART locals detailed recent victories on behalf of workers harmed by wage theft and worker misclassification; SMART-TD Ohio State Legislative Director Clyde Whitaker testified for rail safety in front of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee; Local 24 members highlighted enormous megaprojects and job opportunities in central Ohio; and members in Maryland and Canada talked about their work serving their neighbors during the SMART Army’s month of community action in April.

Finally, SMART General President Joseph Sellers reflected on the progress our union has made on pension strength and security, progressing from the red zone, to the yellow zone, and finally to the green zone in January of last year.

“I wasn’t quite sure that I, during my working career, would have the opportunity to see a green zone National Pension Fund,” Sellers said in his interview with SMART News. “That was a really good process for us.”

Watch all episode eight segments here.

Freight rail safety was the focus of the March 2023 episode of the Talking SMART podcast. SMART-TD Alternate National Legislative Director Jared Cassity and SMART-TD Government Affairs Rep. Daniel Banks joined the podcast to discuss the fight to improve freight rail safety at both the state and federal levels in the weeks following the disaster in East Palestine, Ohio. 

The East Palestine derailment and other well-publicized accidents since have made clear what SMART-TD and rail labor have been saying for years: So-called “Precision Scheduled Railroading” is bad for workers, the public and the environment.

“It speaks to the seriousness of the devastation that has been done to the railroad industry since the implementation of Precision Scheduled Railroading, and it speaks to the fact that our predictions are now coming into fruition. And it’s both a shame and a frustration, and – to be quite frank – a very anger-filled reaction for us,” Cassity said. “It’s shocking to see all these derailments take place. … All of these things can be brought back to Precision Scheduled Railroading and what it’s done.”

“We need to act in solidarity” on freight rail safety

Both Cassity and Banks emphasized the importance of pushing for freight rail safety regulation across the country. Federal legislation like the bipartisan Railway Safety Act of 2023 has already been introduced, along with bills in states across the country. Now, both guests said, SMART members, families and allies need to get involved and make sure the railroads and elected officials feel the pressure.

“We need the action. Today’s the day, and we need to capture the momentum – we need to act in solidarity,” Banks said, adding that members can get involved by texting “Rail Safety” to 67336 (message and data rates may apply).

Take Action Today to Support Freight Rail Safety!

“When it comes to combatting the railroads, what we need is membership engagement, membership interest, membership participation,” Cassity explained. “We need the members to win this fight … we have got to have the membership speaking, because they’re the constituents, they’re the influencers. The union is the voice of many, but we need the many voices to be speaking as one.”

At the end of this episode, SMART General President Joseph Sellers discussed what SMART is doing to recruit nonunion sheet metal workers and meet the workforce needs presented by megaprojects, infrastructure investment and more. Listen to the full episode here, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Return to Talking SMART index page.

Talking SMART is a member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network — working people’s voices, broadcasting worldwide 24 hours a day.

Freight rail safety in the news

“From the Ballast” is an open column for SMART Transportation Division rail members to state their perspective on issues related to the railroad industry. Members of the union are encouraged to submit content by emailing to news_TD@smart-union.org. Columns are published at the union’s discretion and may be published in the SMART TD newspaper.

The term “getting railroaded” has its origins in the 1800s. Landowners would use it when the rail companies stole land in order to lay down new track. It has evolved these days to describe generally being cheated or bullied. Unfortunately, the originators of the term who perfected the practice are still bullying, but now it is focused on their own employees.

Today’s corporate railroads may not be stealing land, but they are stealing our jobs, our time and our safety. With Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR), the number of railroad jobs has dropped 30%. Thousands of jobs were done away with even as we kept our country going through a pandemic. More were eliminated as the carrier executives chased an operating ratio that enriched the shareholders and railroad owners.

As headcount diminished, time was stolen as those still employed were forced to work more hours with new attendance policies that leave little time for family or rest. This led to a worker exodus that even further decreased employees and time.

This all resulted in workers’ safety being stolen. Pushing workers to the point of fatigue and making doctor’s appointments all but impossible to schedule have hurt workers’ health. Cutting inspection times and maintenance has led to more breakdowns and derailments. Growing train lengths have increased these dangers as well. In short, workers are all still getting railroaded.

SMART-TD on YouTube
SMART TD Ohio State Legislative Director Clyde Whitaker testified before the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee on March 22.
SMART-TD Member Testifies About Rail Safety Before Senate Committee
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During a hearing on rail safety, Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw refuses to commit to two-person crews on freight train, despite SMART-TD Ohio State Legislative Director Clyde Whitaker testifying that the East Palestine disaster would've been worse without a two-person crew. #Shorts
Norfolk Southern CEO REFUSES to commit to two-person crews on freight trains
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In April 2022, SMART Transportation Division President Jeremy Ferguson joined other TD members, union railroaders, shippers and more to testify before the Surface Transportation Board (STB) on the devastating effects Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR) has had on customers, workers and the American public. "The unreliable service has an impact … on every piece of the supply chain, from the producer all the way to the consumer." Despite the devastating inflation that results from supply chain disruption, despite railroad workers leaving the workforce in record numbers, and despite testimony on carriers' poor service from more than 20 shippers or groups representing rail customers, the railroad carriers continue to champion PSR, and they refuse to reward railroad workers with a fair contract. Remember: PSR is not about precision, scheduling or railroading. It's not about safety. It's not about serving customers. It's not about workers. It's about profit, and profit alone. We will continue to fight against the carriers’ greed as we seek a fair contract and safe working conditions for our members. We urge all members of this union to contact their senators and representatives: Tell them to side with railroad workers.
Damning Testimony on Rail Carrier Policies
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SMART Transportation Division President Jeremy Ferguson talks about the negative effects large rail carriers' Precision Scheduled Railroading operating scheme has had on worker and public safety. This appearance took place on June 14, 2022, before the U.S. House of Representatives' Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials.
SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson testifies on rail safety 6-14-22 before U.S. House subcommittee
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SMART-TD, rail labor join Sen. Bernie Sanders for press conference on sick days
YouTube Video UExFekJDRUFvTFJZcTh5SnhrN0lMaUVLVzk4RjUzRFFKSS4xMkVGQjNCMUM1N0RFNEUx
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So, what do we do about it?

Some have conceded that these companies and their lobbyists are too powerful. This mentality is understood, but we’ve seen challenges like these defeated before. Child labor, segregation and unsafe working conditions were all beaten back by unions. There’s no doubt that the odds seemed insurmountable at the time and yet they overcame them.

They did this because they had one big thing going for them. They were on the right side. Well, so are railroaders. In the last few years, we have seen customers, the public, news media and even politicians from both parties start talking about the dangers of PSR and one-person rail crews. Five years ago, it was ridiculous to think that major media outlets would have reports on these issues or even be concerned about, but they have and they are and progress is being made.

This happened because railroaders spoke out. They wrote emails, met with representatives and even used social media to spread the word. If all of us, together, made an effort to do the same, we could win this battle.

So, please use the resources that are available — take some time and write an email to your representative. Talk with leaders at a City Council meeting. Make some handouts and pin them on a board. Go to a union meeting and suggest something to inform your community. Do some philanthropy and talk about railroad issues. Put up an informative table at a festival. Do something to fight back. It’s hard to quiet 100,000 voices ringing. Every person who learns about this corporate greed and corruption is another crack in their armor. It’s easy to give up, but let’s stand strong together and let them know that the days of getting “railroaded” are now over.

This article was submitted by an active member of SMART Transportation Division Local 445 (Niota, Ill.) who works for BNSF and chose to remain anonymous. We thank him for his submission and his continued advocacy in union matters!