Category: News
RRB: Coronavirus Relief Act impacts railroad workers
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or CARES Act, signed into law March 27, boosts unemployment and sickness benefits for railroad workers impacted by the pandemic. Under the CARES Act, the 1-week waiting period required before railroad workers can receive [...]
Victory in Washington as governor signs bill
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signed into law H.B. 1841, a two-person crew bill that was championed in various forms for seven years by SMART-TD Washington State Legislative Director Herb Krohn and the other members of the state’s legislative board. Affectionately known as [...]
COVID-19: Our determination will get us through this together, Local 610 LR and Navy veteran says
A few months ago, I had the opportunity to move a lite engine from customer to customer. I like moves like this because they are different from the normal everyday work of a local road switcher. This move was no different from normal railroading, other than this yard bird cau [...]
DOL’s OLMS extends LM reporting deadline to June 30
Due to the ongoing disruptions caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Department of Labor’s Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) updates its March 17, 2020, advisory concerning Title II of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (LMRDA). Unio [...]
DOT guidance on compliance with drug and alcohol testing regulations during pandemic
This guidance document provides clarity to DOT-regulated employers, employees, and service agents on conducting DOT drug-and-alcohol testing given concerns about the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). We, as a nation, are facing an unprecedented public health emergency that [...]
Ferguson discusses emergency request regarding COVID-19
The following article by Dan Zukowski has been reproduced from Trains Magazine’s website with permission. Labor unions representing rail and transit workers have asked the Federal Railroad Administration for two emergency orders to address the dangers in their work envi [...]RRB: Message from the Labor Member of the Railroad Retirement Board, John Bragg
The purpose of this notice is to update you on how COVID-19 is impacting operations at the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB). Be assured, while it is not business as usual, the agency remains open for business. Listed below are some of the more notable changes. Last week, my of [...]
COVID-19 hits close to home: UP worker tests positive
Union Pacific has announced that a 50-year-old man that works in UP’s Bailey Yard in North Platte, Neb., has tested positive for COVID-19. The employee and a number of co-workers who came into contact with him are currently quarantined at home. It’s suspected that [...]