Category: Front Page
Following furloughs, rail workers demand immediate federal inspections of BNSF locomotives and rail cars
WASHINGTON, DC – The shop craft unions at Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Railway are urgently calling upon the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to initiate unannounced focus inspections on all locomotives and rail cars owned and leased by BNSF Railway, and immediate [...]
SMART joins labor, environmental allies to demand Green Jobs, Green Transit in New York
SMART International Organizer Warren Faust and International Representative Larry Kinzie joined fellow union members, environmental advocates, industry leaders and New York state legislators on January 30 to call on Governor Kathy Hochul to include the Green Transit, Green Jo [...]
SMART TD, TTD Set For Victory Over Carriers On Train Length Data Collection
For more than a century, the carriers’ lobbyists and lawyers have been paid very well for their ability to argue out of both sides of their mouths. One of the battlefields where our union and the carriers have clashed since the onset of Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR) i [...]
Local 46 apprentices help restore historic Rochester trolley car
This article was originally published on WNYLaborToday.com. Images courtesy of WNYLaborToday and Local 46. When it comes to giving back to the Rochester, N.Y., community, the members and apprentices of SMART Local 46 are ready, willing and able to do what they can, [...]
Georgia sheet metal worker says Local 85 has given him “countless blessings”
In January 2024, Belonging and Excellence for All (BE4ALL) announced the winner of its fourth-quarter contest, which asked members to answer the question: Why are you proud to be a SMART union member? For 16-year Local 85 (Atlanta, Georgia) member Matthew Beckham, the contest [...]
Department of Labor issues final rule on classifying workers as employees or independent contractors under the Fair Labor Standards Act
On Tuesday, January 9, the United States Department of Labor (DOL) issued its final rule to help workers and employers better understand how to analyze who is an employee or independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). This rule will make it harder for co [...]
SMART statement on implementation of President Biden’s executive order on PLAs
On Monday, December 18, the Biden-Harris administration announced regulations that will implement President Biden’s executive order requiring project labor agreements (PLAs) on federal construction projects costing $35 million or more. In response, SMART issued the following [...]
California High-Speed Rail Authority pledges to use unionized labor
CALIFORNIA – Today, the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CAHSRA), which oversees the largest high-speed rail project under construction in North America, announced a ground-breaking agreement with 13 rail unions to utilize rail workers covered by federal railroad labor l [...]