The Republican tax bill would result in millions of dollars in cuts to the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund and take funds away from out-of-work employees. Tell your senators and representatives to VOTE NO.
Next week, the House and Senate are expected to vote on a tax bill that is expected to add $1.5 trillion to $2 trillion to the federal deficit in the form of corporate and individual tax cuts. According to estimates, the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund could lose as much as $9 million without any subsequent action by Congress under a 2010 budget process known as sequestration.
“Required spending reductions would significantly exceed the total resources available to be sequestered,” said Michele Neuendorf, a Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) labor member counsel, in an email. “This would have the practical result of a 100% sequestration of all non-exempt direct spending accounts including the funds from the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund which is used to pay unemployment and sickness benefits.”
Under the federal “Pay-As-You-Go” (PAYGO) Act of 2010, federal spending is required to balance or offset any increases to the federal budget deficit (also known as sequestration). As a result, the tax bill would trigger automatic budget cuts across all federal programs including the RRB’s Railroad Unemployment Trust Fund, which is targeted for a 6.6 percent cut or approximately $9 million in the 2018 fiscal year by the administration.
“This tax proposal is Robin Hood caught in reverse,” said SMART Transportation Division National Legislative Director John Risch. “It would take from the poor and give to the rich. If the tax bill becomes law, the railroads will still be able to deduct money that they spend on union-busting lawyers while our members will no longer be able to deduct their union dues. The corporate tax rate for the big railroads will go from 35% to 21% while ours will stay the same with fewer deductions.”
It also means that $9 million intended for ailing and unemployed rail workers doesn’t go where it was supposed to. Instead it will go into the pockets of corporations and the well-to-do.
“Every person in America should be outraged that the Republican tax bill will borrow $1.5 trillion to $2.5 trillion to fund tax cuts for the wealthy while leaving no room for future federal investments toward infrastructure projects such as airports, transit systems, and passenger railroads,” Risch said. “I’ve been in the business of government policy since the 1980s and this is simply the worst tax proposal I have ever seen. Economists across the political spectrum are condemning this plan and the Republicans are so desperate for some sort of ‘win’ they are moving forward with little to no transparency or accountability to their constituents.”
Time is running out. A vote is planned for next week. Call your senators and representatives and urge them to vote against the tax bill.
Find out who your members of Congress are by accessing the SMART-TD Legislative Action Center or call the U.S. Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121.
Author: bnagy
Last week, the SMART Transportation Division National Legislative Office submitted comments to the Department of Transportation (DOT) seeking input on existing rules and other agency actions that are good candidates for repeal, replacement, suspension, or modification. In our comments, we remind the DOT that many rules and regulations in the railroad industry were written in blood and that the reduction in overall accident rates are thanks to the various safety regulations issued by agencies like the Federal Railroad Administration.
Furthermore, we urged the DOT to continue to engage the Railroad Safety Advisory Committee (RSAC) for future rulemaking — a collaborative process that has been successful for nearly 20 years. Alternatively, the Association for American Railroads has called on the DOT to issue rules “based on a demonstrated need, as reflected in current and complete data and sound science; and non-prescriptive regulatory tools, like performance-based regulations…” while listing a number of existing federal requirements. We believe this approach would only undermine critical safety needs in the rail industry such as the need for two-person crews and ECP braking systems.
Here are SMART TD’s comments and comments submitted by AAR.
A local treasurer workshop Feb. 21 to 23 will provide hands-on training on the responsibilities and duties pertaining to their office, including direct receipts, iLink and WinStabs. It will also focus on proper completion of monthly billings and member record maintenance.
This training will also be LIVESTREAMED for participants who are unable to attend in person at the SMART Transportation Division office — 24950 Country Club Blvd., North Olmsted, OH 44070.
Registration is required for both in-person and web-based attendance. Contact Alyssa Patchin at (216) 227-5281 or apatchin@smart-union.org to register and for discounted hotel rates if you are traveling to the workshop. Space is limited, and attendees will be accepted on a first-come basis.
The three-day session will include all training and materials at no cost to the local. However, the local is responsible for all other costs associated with the treasurer’s attendance at the workshop. Lost time or salary, travel, hotel and meal expenses connected with attendance may be reimbursed if pre-approved at the local meeting as an allowable expense of the local. Local treasurers are responsible for their own travel/lodging arrangements.
The standard basic daily and mileage rates of pay negotiated under the new National Rail Agreement are now available on the SMART TD website.
The rate tables pertain to employees in the crafts of conductor, yardman, yardmaster, brakeman and engineer who are covered by the national contract and are retroactive to July 1, 2016.
The ratified contract covers more than 35,000 SMART Transportation Division members employed by BNSF, CSX, Kansas City Southern, Norfolk Southern, Soo Line, Union Pacific and numerous smaller carriers – all represented in national handling by the rail industry’s National Carriers’ Conference Committee.
To view the rates, select “Documents” in the blue-line menu bar near the top of the SMART TD homepage, then select “Rates of Pay.” For a direct link to the rate tables, follow this link.
A special webpage has been created for members to read and download various documents related to the newly ratified National Rail Agreement that was approved by SMART TD members on Dec. 1, 2017.
Follow this link to view the signed agreements, questions and answers, a synopsis of the contract and other documents.
The page will be updated with additional information as available.
By a margin of nearly four to one, SMART Transportation Division members have voted to APPROVE the new National Rail Contract. The voting was conducted by BallotPoint Election Services, who certified the following results for each craft eligible to vote:
| CRAFT | ACCEPT | REJECT |
| Conductors | 79.89% | 20.11% |
| Brakemen | 78.98% | 21.02% |
| Engine Service | 76.58% | 23.42% |
| Yardmen | 79.97% | 20.03% |
| Yardmaster | 86.68% | 13.32% |
| Combined | 79.57% | 20.43% |
The approved contract will have an effective date of December 1, 2017, with implementation of new pay rates and employee healthcare cost-sharing modifications planned for January 1, 2018. Employees’ monthly healthcare contributions will remain frozen at $228.89 for the life of the contract.
The term of the agreement is for five years, from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2019. In addition to a 3% increase previously negotiated and already implemented on January 1, 2015, the contract provides for full retroactive pay of 2% from July 1, 2016 through June 30, 2017, and 4% from July 1, 2017, until implementation of the new rates. Thereafter, affected members will receive a boost in wage rates of 2.5% on July 1, 2018, and 3% on July 1, 2019.
The ratified contract will cover over 35,000 SMART TD members employed by BNSF, CSX, Norfolk Southern, Kansas City Southern, Union Pacific and numerous smaller carriers, all of whom were represented in this round of bargaining by the rail industry’s National Carriers’ Conference Committee.
The SMART TD negotiating team was led by President John Previsich, who was assisted in the negotiations by Vice Presidents David Wier, John Lesniewski, Troy Johnson, John England, Doyle Turner and Jeremy Ferguson, along with General Chairpersons Danny Young (BNSF), Mark Cook (NS), Brent Leonard (UP) and Steve Mavity (CSX), all four of whom are nationally elected TD officers in addition to serving as General Chairpersons.
For this round of bargaining, SMART TD joined forces with five other unions to form the Coordinated Bargaining Group. The other unions in the CBG are the American Train Dispatchers Association; the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (a Division of the Rail Conference of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters); the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen; the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Iron Ship Builders, Blacksmiths, Forgers, and Helpers and the National Conference of Firemen and Oilers/SEIU.
President Previsich commented: “I believe that our negotiating team, along with the teams from the other unions in the CBG, are to be commended for staying the course during a long and tedious round of negotiations. The easy thing for them to do when the going got tough was to declare defeat and walk away from the negotiating table, as others have done, but our team never wavered. By rejecting the carriers’ unreasonable demands while staying at the table and continuing to negotiate, the team was successful in obtaining an agreement that achieved an approval rate of 79.57%.”
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The SMART Transportation Division, formerly the United Transportation Union, is the largest rail union in the United States representing members in all operating crafts, including engineers, conductors, trainmen, switchmen and yardmasters.
SMART Transportation Division National Legislative Director John Risch, pictured, along with Bob Perciasepe, president of the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, and D. Michael Langford, national president of the Utility Workers Union of America, in an op-ed piece published Nov. 29 on thehill.com remind leaders in Congress not to overlook the job-creation potential of carbon-capture technology.
Follow this link to read the full column: thehill.com/opinion/energy-environment/362411-congress-heres-a-co2-smart-tax-fix-to-protect-create-jobs
A ride on a UTV in September nearly turned fatal for Shane Leach when he severed an artery in his arm and nearly bled to death in the desert.
While out with a friend, Leach’s vehicle tipped on a turn. It rolled onto his arm, pinning it between the UTV and the ground.
About a month in intensive care followed, as did about 15 surgeries in which doctors were able to reconstruct and eventually save his left arm.
“I was in surgery almost every other day just to work on my arm,” the 21-year-old from Las Vegas said.
And Leach, a new hire as a conductor in April for Union Pacific, said that he was about two weeks short of receiving full union benefits when the accident happened.
“It put me in a spot where I had to just figure things out,” he said.
But SMART Transportation Division Nevada State Legislative Director Jason Doering, Local 1117 President Wyatt Kelly, and Vince Ybarra, chairman of Local 1117, in Las Vegas, Nev., and others weren’t going to let Leach figure it out alone. They visited Shane in the hospital before his November discharge and helped to lift his spirits.
“They’ve called and checked in on him,” said Brenna Bristol Leach, Shane’s mother. “He really wants to go back to work, he really enjoyed the culture. The outreach from the guys has solidified that.”
Shane Leach said a recent drive past a local railyard reminded him how he can’t wait to get back aboard.
“I just thought – I loved my job when I got it,” he said. “It was really tough in the hospital to have that taken away. It just motivates me to do as much work as I can to get back.
“It really showed me how much I really enjoy being a railroader.”
Bristol Leach said the doctors who cared for Shane in the hospital have said that he’ll recover use of his arm, but a timeline has not been defined – there’s still physical therapy and orthopedic exams for Leach to power through, which means more time away from work and more stress on his depleted savings.
“It could be six months, it could be less, it could be more,” Bristol Leach said.
But the major surgeries and skin grafts have been successful for Shane, she said, and her son remains upbeat for an eventual return to the railroad alongside his future SMART TD brothers and sisters.
“It really makes me feel good that they haven’t given up on me, and it motivates me to get through the therapy and get back out on the rails,” Leach said.
A GoFundMe online fundraiser has been set up at https://www.gofundme.com/shanes-medical-fund-recovery as Shane continues to recover. Any help would be appreciated.
It’s that time of year again. Americans across the country will get ready for the time-honored tradition of gathering with family and friends to give thanks. But first, they will agonize – possibly panic – over how to get where they’re going on the busiest travel day of the year. The latter isn’t exactly how Norman Rockwell depicts this day — but it is reality.
An estimated 51 million travelers this year will hit the road or take to the skies. Before that grand turkey feast graces their dinner tables, Americans will have to endure long lines, traffic, canceled, delayed and overbooked flights and stress — lots of it. It is on this day when we feel the true consequences of letting our transportation system and infrastructure fall apart.
Right now, there are thousands of bridges in the U.S. in need of replacement or repair, the nation’s transit systems are being choked by anemic budgets, Amtrak trains running through century-old tunnels, millions of miles of neglected highways, an aviation system operating with severely outdated technology and a maritime system, including ports, suffering from decades of neglect.
As frustrated as travelers may feel, there’s a group of people who understand their concerns all too well: the men and women who keep America moving. Transportation employees know, probably more than anyone else, that this country can and must do better when it comes to making travel safe and efficient. After all, they, too, contend with the consequences of a neglected transportation system — and they do so on a daily basis.
Talk to a transportation worker, and you’ll hear about more than just poor infrastructure. They’ll tell you stories about safety problems, obsolete and outdated equipment, fatigue on the job, belligerent employers and passengers. You’ll hear about budget cuts that undermine safety and reliability, and threaten good wages, benefits and job security.
You’ll also hear about dedication, hard work and responsibility. That’s because, despite the immense challenges they face, the men and women who keep America moving remain focused on the needs of the people and country they serve. America’s transportation workers understand that no matter what obstacles they face, their priority is transporting people and goods as safely and efficiently as possible. Many will give up or postpone Thanksgiving plans with family and friends to accommodate the needs of the traveling public. And that — putting others before yourself — is what the season of giving is all about.
This Thanksgiving, pause for a moment and give thanks to the people who operate, maintain and build our transportation systems. Their commitment to getting the job done is what keeps our journeys safe. Their commitment to service helps make holidays, including the one we’re about to celebrate, possible.
The lifetime maximum benefit for the Railroad Employees National Early Retirement Major Medical Benefit (ERMA or GA-46000) Plan will increase from $157,800 to $162,500 beginning Jan. 1, 2018.
At the end of 2001, Labor and Management had agreed on various procedures to administer the annual changes in the amount of the lifetime maximum benefit under the ERMA Plan.
In conjunction with the formula established in 2001, a new lifetime maximum was calculated by utilizing the October 2017 consumer price index (CPI) data for Hospital and Related Services and Physician Services. The result is a lifetime maximum for 2018 of $162,500.
For individuals who have reached the lifetime maximum, the incremental maximum available is applied to eligible expenses submitted for dates of service on or after the effective date of the new maximum. For 2018, this amount will be $4,700.
This change will apply to all railroads and crafts participating in ERMA.