On June 15 and 16, 2021, the simmering dispute between the SMART Transportation Division and carriers over crew consist finally reached arbitration before neutral party John LaRocca in Sacramento, Calif. Class I railroads BNSF, UP, NS and KCS initiated a claim in October 2019 [...]
Brother Karl Middlemas, 62, of Local 807 (Tucson, Ariz.) – a member of our union for more than 13 years – died when the crew van he was being transported in collided with a tractor-trailer late on July 6. Brother Middlemas hired on in 2007 and most recently served [...]
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 201 [...]
The leadership of GCA-953 (Union Pacific) have kicked off a slate of educational sessions for local officers and members. The first of six sessions took place June 22 and 23 in Topeka, Kan., with General Chairperson Luke Edington, Associate GC Ian Reynolds and Sr. Vice GC Zac [...]
CLEVELAND, Ohio (July 1, 2021) — SMART Transportation Division leaders expressed their appreciation as the Investing in a New Vision for the Environment and Surface Transportation (INVEST) in America Act (H.R. 3684) successfully passed out of the U.S. House of Representatives [...]
An online fundraiser has been established for Eddie Dotson, a member of SMART-TD Local 1545 (Monroe, La.), who was injured June 23, 2021, while on duty in Tioga, La. Brother Dotson, 52, a trustee for his local and a member of our union for 17 years, lost limbs in the accident [...]
The paths to the Rule of 2 are open. Path 1: The INVEST ACT (H.R. 3684, the House Infrastructure Bill) and Path 2: a regulatory priority of the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to revisit freight crew size. U.S House Transportat [...]
The Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) administers the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (RUIA), which provides two kinds of benefits for qualified railroaders: unemployment benefits for those who become unemployed but are ready, willing and able to work; and sickness benefits [...]
SMART Transportation Division and the Trustees of the Discipline Income Protection Program (DIPP) are pleased to announce a new maximum daily benefit level for program participants beginning Sept. 1, 2021. Participants will now have the option to elect a $250 daily benefit at [...]
Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) Labor Member John Bragg announced June 17 that Assistant to the Labor Member Geraldine “Geri” Clark will be retiring July 2 after 51 years with the agency. “Geri’s retirement is a great loss to my office and the RRB. Her 51 ye [...]