TD members: To participate in ratification, be sure info is updated

IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO ALL SMART-TD MEMBERS SUBJECT TO NATIONAL RAIL NEGOTIATIONS As you are likely already aware, SMART Transportation Division members will soon be voting on the 2022 Tentative National Rail Agreement. As required by Article 21B, Section 91, of the SMART Constitution, voting information will be mailed to all eligible members via USPS first-class […]

President Ferguson presents facts on Tentative Agreement

SMART Transportation Division President Jeremy Ferguson appeared in a joint video with Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen President Dennis Pierce on Oct. 7 with both presenting facts regarding the Tentative Agreement (TA) being considered by rail labor. President Ferguson also answered additional questions regarding the TA on a pair of episodes of the Between […]

Must-watch video for SMART-TD, BLET freight rail members

A must-watch for all involved members of the SMART-TD and the BLET, SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson and BLET President Dennis Pierce have published a joint video regarding the tentative national freight agreement. The presidents describe the challenging political environment surrounding the negotiating process and outline the wages, work rules, and health & welfare benefits secured […]

Ultimately, decision about tentative agreement is in members’ hands

For the first time in more than 30 years, this Union has taken the Railway Labor Act (RLA) to its limits. We negotiated. We mediated. We cooled off. We went all the way to a Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) and then back into a cooling-off period again. The coordinated bargaining group was tasked with obtaining […]

SMART-TD statement on the tentative agreement (Sept. 16, 2022)

To TD members covered by national handling: Since the announcement of the tentative agreement (TA) yesterday morning, a number of posts purporting to reveal the finalized contents or finalized components of the TA have spread rapidly and are being presented as factual. They are not. Anyone who states that they have seen a final copy […]

SMART-TD, BLET reach tentative agreement with railroads

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  September 15, 2022 CONTACT: Jamie Horwitz, 202-549-4921, jhdcpr@starpower.net Statement by Jeremy Ferguson, President SMART Transportation Division and Dennis Pierce, President, Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen On Tentative Agreement Reached Early This Morning Between Unions Representing Conductors and Engineers and the Nation’s Class I Railroads Early this morning following nearly three years […]

SMART-TD, BLET joint statement on rail embargo

Jeremy Ferguson, President, SMART Transportation Division and Dennis Pierce, President, Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, Teamsters Rail Conference, on move announced by the nation’s largest railroads to further abuse shippers and gridlock the supply chain in order to extort a contract settlement from rail unions: CLEVELAND — Late on Friday, September 9, the nation’s […]

Alert for freight rail members

ATTENTION ALL FREIGHT RAIL MEMBERS: The SMART Transportation Division wants to hear your feedback about PEB 250’s recommendations, and our ongoing national contract dispute! This is a pivotal time in our history, and your feedback is invaluable to helping your negotiating team determine our next steps. Polling will continue to be conducted via our usual […]

SMART-TD, BLET joint statement on Labor Day 2022

The following is a statement from SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson and BLET President Dennis Pierce. CLEVELAND, (September 2) — As we approach Labor Day 2022, our Unions stand at a crossroads. While our normal messages heading into one of the most important days for Organized Labor would be about Labor’s proud history of improving the […]