RRB releases statement on 2015 tax rates

The amounts of compensation subject to railroad retirement Tier I and Tier II payroll taxes will increase in 2015, with the Tier I tax rates remaining the same while Tier II tax rates will increase for both railroad employers and employees. Also, railroad unemployment insuran [...]

Walker Aims At Building Trades, Private Sector Unions

A Wisconsin State Representative has announced that he will introduce a Right-to-Work for less bill in the upcoming legislative session.  The move comes just days after a former Americans for Prosperity associate, Lorri Pickens, announced a new tea party group called “Wiscons [...]

Large settlement upheld in case against UP

An administrative review board decision to award North Platte resident Brian Petersen more than $300,000 in damages from Union Pacific Railroad was upheld on Nov. 20. The case dates back to August 2009 when Petersen, an apprentice machinist, was checking his work schedule in [...]

Despite price drop, crude by rail remains big issue

The drop in the price of oil since OPEC failed in its meeting last week to agree on production cuts has sparked speculation about whether production in North Dakota’s Bakken shale region will decline as some marginal drilling operations become financially less viable. Some ma [...]

Opinion: Metra engineers, conductors do a great job

The following letter to the editor of the Chicago Sun-Times by Martin Oberman, chairman of the Metra Board of Directors, was published by the newspaper Nov. 23. It was in response to an article previously published by the newspaper that implied that Metra conductors and engin [...]

NJT to train crews: Next stop, charm school

Some NJ Transit rail employees who deal with commuters will find themselves back in the classroom next year for a customer relations refresher. The program was prompted by issues brought up by commuters on social media and shared with NJ Transit. The two day training classes [...]

Opinion: Nice things happen on trains

Imagine you’re in charge of a company that serves the public good; imagine your company, unlike others in the same business, has to ask for money every year to keep itself, an arterial of the country’s transportation system, running. Imagine that fracking, another part of Ame [...]