Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen

Rail unions ask court to force BNSF to negotiate over vaccine mandate

A photograph of a Union Pacific train and a BNSF train in a rail yarrd.

Two rail unions want a federal court to dismiss BNSF’s lawsuit over its ability to implement a COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Instead, they want the court to compel the railroad to negotiate any vaccine requirements.

The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers – Transportation Division (SMART-TD) contend that the company’s vaccine mandate violates the Railway Labor Act (RLA).

The unions are asking...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/rail-unions-ask-court-to-force-bnsf-to-negotiate-over-vaccine-mandate

Union Pacific, Norfolk Southern vaccine lawsuits combined in court

A photograph of a man expecting rail track at a rail yard.

Ongoing lawsuits between railroad unions and two Class I railroads over requiring employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine have been consolidated in federal court.

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on Nov. 17 combined two proceedings, one involving Union Pacific (NYSE: UNP) and the other involving Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC), according to a Monday update from the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET). Judge John Z. Lee will oversee the proceeding.

BLET,...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/union-pacific-norfolk-southern-vaccine-lawsuits-combined-in-court

BNSF takes unions to court over vaccine mandate

Add BNSF to the list of Class I railroads that are jostling with rail unions in court over implementing the COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

BNSF (NYSE: BRK.B) filed a lawsuit Sunday with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Illinois asking the court to agree with the railroad’s interpretation of the Railway Labor Act when it comes to complying with federal mandates. It also asked the court to issue a decision that would prevent the unions from striking because of the vaccine mandate.

The...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/bnsf-takes-unions-to-court-over-vaccine-mandate

Unions, Norfolk Southern grapple over vaccine mandate, conductor assignments

A photograph of a Norfolk Southern loocmotive rolling down a field.

Norfolk Southern and two rail unions, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) and the Transportation Division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers (SMART-TD), are continuing to scuffle in court over two hot-button issues: the COVID-19 vaccine mandate and engineers’ roles.

Unions seek immediate stop to the practice of making engineers work as conductors

The two unions want the courts to immediately stop NS from using train...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/unions-norfolk-southern-grapple-over-vaccine-mandate-conductor-assignments

Norfolk Southern sues unions over COVID-19 vaccine mandate

A photograph of a Norfolk Southern train parked next to a Union Pacific train.

Norfolk Southern has filed a lawsuit in federal court against three unions over its ability to compel employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.  

In a Thursday filing to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, NS (NYSE: NSC) said it has the authority to require its employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19. NS made an announcement last Wednesday saying that it would comply with President Joe Biden’s executive order mandating “covered employees” of federal...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/norfolk-southern-sues-unions-over-covid-19-vaccine-mandate

Union Pacific, unions spar over vaccine mandate rollout

A photograph of a train parked in a rail yard.

Union Pacific and rail union members are sparring in federal court over how UP should implement a federal mandate requiring certain companies to ensure their employees are vaccinated against COVID-19 by Dec. 8.

Both sides say the other is failing to negotiate accordingly under guidelines spelled out in the Railway Labor Act. Both parties, alongside other railroads and union members, are also in the midst of multiyear negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement.

UP (NYSE: UNP) filed...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/union-pacific-unions-spar-over-vaccine-mandate-rollout

Unions allege Norfolk Southern job cuts saddled engineers with other duties

A photograph of a Union Pacific locomotive and a Norfolk Southern locomotive parked in a rail yard.

Two rail unions are alleging that Norfolk Southern has trimmed its workforce so deeply as a result of precision scheduled railroading (PSR) that it is now forcing some locomotive engineers to perform duties as conductors and brakemen. 

The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) and the Transportation Division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART-TD) have filed lawsuits in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/unions-allege-norfolk-southern-job-cuts-saddled-engineers-with-other-duties

Intermodal Summit: Precision scheduled railroading ‘all about doing more with less’

This fireside chat recap is from FreightWaves’ Intermodal Summit.

FIRESIDE CHAT TOPIC: How has precision scheduling railroading (PSR) affected service levels over the past decade? 

DETAILS: Matt Parker, a legislative chairman with the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) in Nevada, discusses with FreightWaves’ Kevin Hill why precision scheduled railroading (PSR) isn’t about precision, but about profit.

SPEAKER: Matt Parker, chairman of the Nevada State Legislative Board for the...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/intermodal-summit-precision-scheduled-railroading-all-about-doing-more-with-less

US Circuit Court rejects FRA’s actions on train crew size

A photograph of two people in front of a Union Pacific locomotive.

A federal appeals court on Tuesday vacated the Federal Railroad Administration’s May 2019 order on train crew size because the agency didn’t undergo an adequate public review process prior to issuing the order.

A three-judge panel with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in San Francisco said FRA didn’t conduct adequate due process prior to declaring that its May 2019 order on train crew size preempted state laws requiring a minimum number of employees working on a freight train crew....

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/us-circuit-court-rejects-fras-actions-on-train-crew-size

Class I railroads pressed about service, furloughs

A photograph of a worker fixing track in a rail yard. There is a parked train behind him.

The Surface Transportation Board (STB) and Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Administrator Ron Batory have sent letters to the CEOs of all seven Class I railroads asking them to resolve service issues that have arisen during the months of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Their letters come as two labor groups — the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers – Transportation Division (SMART-TD) —...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/class-i-railroads-pressed-about-service-furloughs

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