Category: Amtrak Negotiations
Senate confirms Deidre Hamilton to NMB
The U.S. Senate in a 52-48 vote Dec. 7 confirmed labor attorney Deidre Hamilton to the National Mediation Board (NMB), shifting control of the the government body that facilitates labor-management relations in the aviation and rail industries to a 2-to-1 Democratic margin. Nominated by President Joe Biden in April, Hamilton bring more than two decades […]
Carrier groups’ waiver extension request denied by FRA
The Federal Railroad Administration on Sept. 21 sided with a SMART Transportation Division request to reject the extension of COVID-related regulatory waiver requests by the Association of American Railroads (AAR) and the American Public Transportation Association (APTA). The waivers, initially granted in March 2020 by the Trump administration in response to the emerging coronavirus pandemic, […]
Two nominated to National Mediation Board
President Joe Biden last week announced two nominees — Gerald Fauth III and Linda Puchala — to return to the National Mediation Board (NMB). Gerald W. Fauth III, the current NMB chairman, was nominated for another three-year term. He has served on the board since November 2017. Fauth has 40 years of experience in the […]
FRA chief of safety Bob Lauby retires
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) will have some major shoes to fill with the April 13, 2019, retirement of Robert “Bob” Lauby, the agency’s chief safety officer. Lauby had served in that capacity for FRA since September 2013. He was a frequent presenter at SMART Transportation Division regional meetings and worked to provide regulatory oversight […]
Three GCAs ratify contract with Amtrak
Amtrak employees represented by SMART Transportation Division General Committees of Adjustment GO-769, GO-663, and GO-342 (Conductors, Assistant Conductors, and Yardmasters) voted in overwhelming favor of ratifying a tentative agreement reached last month. The agreement, effective April 1, 2018, provides a compounded 18.83 percent pay increase over the life of the contract, which runs through 2021, […]
Tentative agreement reached by SMART TD with Amtrak
SMART Transportation Division General Chairpersons Dirk Sampson (GO 769), Robert Keeley (GO 342) and Fran Ariola (GO 663) announced today that they have reached a tentative agreement with Amtrak on behalf of their members employed by the passenger railroad. The chairpersons convened Jan. 10 and 11 at SMART TD headquarters in Cleveland, Ohio, to continue […]
Sign petition to Trump/FTA to save Caltrain project
Dear SMART TD member: Please click on the link below to sign (and please share) this online petition to the White House asking the FTA to approve funding that has long been earmarked for San Francisco’s Caltrain’s Peninsula Corridor Electrification Project (PCEP) a high-speed, electric commuter train system project: https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/support-9600-american-jobs-tell-fta-approve-funding-caltrain-electrification The petition urges President Donald […]
Union workers shut down right-to-work bill in N.M.
Thanks to scores of union members who showed up at a committee hearing in Santa Fe, New Mexico, a right-to-work measure was effectively shut down and cannot be reintroduced for the remainder of 2017. Read the complete story published by PeoplesWorld.com, here.