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Norfolk Southern hosted a system-wide safety town hall meeting June 1 in the middle of the largest yard in their system in Bellevue, Ohio.

Carrier CEO Alan Shaw was joined on stage by the presidents from six of the 12 rail labor unions, including SMART Transportation Division President Jeremy Ferguson. Leading up to the presentation simulcast to every yard office on the NS system, the representatives from the labor unions and NS executives had an opportunity to meet and greet the employees of Bellevue Yard.

The theme of the event had a dual purpose. CEO Shaw’s vision for a new top-down redesign of NS’s safety culture was one of the main topics as well as the vision of how the company and rail labor could forge this new path focusing on the shared goal of safety. Shaw and his team looked for input from all of the labor representatives in attendance as well as the front-line employees at Bellevue from multiple crafts.

With SMART Transportation Division President Jeremy Ferguson listening at left, Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw addresses the audience at the Bellevue Yard in Ohio on June 1.
With SMART Transportation Division President Jeremy Ferguson listening at left, Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw addresses the audience at the Bellevue Yard in Ohio on June 1.

Shaw’s message was clear to everyone in attendance, “For those of you who have worked for Norfolk Southern for more than a decade, you remember when we had the best service, and we had the best safety in the industry. And we took a lot of pride in that. I want to get that back. I want to be known for that.”

Shaw expressed his intention to distance NS from the “do more with less” mentality that continues to prevail as a management tactic in the industry. In discussing the operation at Bellevue, he touched on the carrier’s removal of one of two hump yards there as a cost-saving maneuver during PSR. He pointed to the recent reopening of the second hump as an indication that doing more with less was no longer the path that his company was on.

“We made a short-term decision looking to cut cost, and we took the hump out. That’s not what we’re doing going forward. We’re going to be different. We’re going to grow,” he said. “We’re going to grow and we’re going to invest. We’re going to invest in our franchise, we’re going to invest in our facilities, and most importantly we’re going to invest in our people.

“My vision for Norfolk Southern is a growth company. So we reopened this hump. And now we’re pushing more volume through here and our service is a lot better.”

He went on to emphasize that NS would no longer be following the model of focusing on short-term margins and cutting costs.

“If you keep cutting and that’s your strategy, you’re probably not going to look like how you look in about 4 or 5 years, because it’s not sustainable,” he said. “For those of you who worked out in the field and still do, I know what those cuts did. I know that they were really hard on you. I know it was really frustrating. That’s not our path forward.”

Shaw also made a unique commitment to his workforce in his speech.

“Too often you see railroads cut employees, and cut workers out in the field when they saw volume decline. Then we didn’t have a good service product when the volume returned. That doesn’t make a lot of sense to me,” Shaw said. “I’m more focused on what we look like five years from now and 10 years from now than what we’re going to do next quarter. So, I said the next time there is an economic downturn, we’re not going to furlough. We’re going to invest in our employees.”

NS unveiled a locomotive with the insignias of all rail labor unions adorning it at the town-hall event June 1.
NS unveiled a locomotive with the insignias of all rail labor unions adorning it at the town-hall event June 1.

Time will tell how legitimate this system-wide corporate rebranding based on safety culture is at Norfolk Southern, but if Thursday’s town hall that included the company’s workers to be heard from and not just spoken to is an indication of what is to come, it seems as though NS is on the right track.

Rail labor in general, and specifically SMART-TD see it as our role to make sure it stays that way. Like the cars rolling down Bellevue’s hump, NS has momentum. It is SMART-TD’s role to be the retarders in this scenario and keep that car under control and make sure it doesn’t jump the tracks or couple up our members again in its pursuit of profit margins.

President Ferguson was the first of the union representatives to address the group. He thanked NS and its team at Bellevue Yard for hosting the event.

SMART Transportation Division President Jeremy Ferguson addresses the audience as Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw, left, looks on during the June 1 event at NS's Bellevue Yard.
SMART Transportation Division President Jeremy Ferguson addresses the audience as Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw, left, looks on during the June 1 event at NS’s Bellevue Yard.

“Our union was created on the need for safety.” Ferguson said, then describing the factors he saw as key. “There are two fundamentals that we have to work with. The first is culture, and the other one is ownership. Part of culture is us being able to change how we treat each other and to show respect when someone raises a hand and says, ‘I’m concerned about this,’ or ‘I think this is an unsafe condition.’ That is a commitment we have to make to each other.

“The other key component, as I said, is ownership. We all have a part in that. The old saying in the unions is that we are our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers. That’s what we have to do. Make sure all of us, including the managers, including the switchmen, the maintenance of way workers, everybody, we take care of each other to make sure everybody is safe. We can’t just say it, we’ve got to live it.”

In addition to President Ferguson, President Mike Baldwin of the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, President Tony Cardwell of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division, President Leo McCann of the American Train Dispatchers Association, and Assistant General President Carl Lakin of the Transportation Communications Union all spoke.

In 2023, political ideology factors into almost every aspect of our lives. It can dictate what news sources we tune into, what restaurants/coffee shops we spend our money at, where we choose to live, and even who we see as a “good neighbor.”

All of these are unfortunate realities of the world today, but the one issue on the American landscape that has managed to transcend politics in 2023 has been railroad safety. People across the country have all been forced to wrestle with the idea of how fragile their reality is in a post-East Palestine world. This issue has been met with the same level of scrutiny and seriousness across the ideological spectrum in newsrooms and legislatures.

Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo decided last week to veto a rail safety bill that had been passed by Nevada legislators.

Red states like Kansas, Utah and Ohio as well as blue-to-purple states like Michigan and Minnesota have successfully put typical politics aside and dealt with rail safety issues, including 2PC, train length, defect detector mandates/regulations along with many more. Momentum and common sense seemingly have gained a foothold since train derailments have been making headlines regularly this year.

Unfortunately for all of us, much like the majority of folks who get off a plane in Las Vegas or Reno with the grandest dreams of striking it rich, rail safety’s luck seems to have run out in Nevada.

SMART-TD’s Nevada State Legislative Director (SLD) Jason Doering and his legislative team put in an amazing effort to push for safety through train length limitations, wayside defect detector regulations that mirrored those put in place in Ohio post-East Palestine, and provisions aimed at preventing first responders from being cut off from the communities they serve by blocked crossings. Their bill, AB 456, was successfully shepherded by Brother Doering through both the Nevada State Assembly and state Senate. After making it through both chambers, AB 456 only had to be signed into law by Gov. Joe Lombardo (R-Nev.)

AB 456 is a clean bill that isn’t tied up into any other state or local issues. Doering somehow managed to avoid having amendments attached to it designed to make it unattractive or expensive for the state to pass. It was a basic question to Lombardo, “Do you see value in protecting communities and rail workers, or do you favor a gargantuan railroad’s bottom line and their campaign contributions?”

This question has one clear, acceptable answer. But the answer from Lombardo given June 2 was not that answer. He vetoed AB 456 clearly and definitively, siding with corporate greed and their bottomless lobbying budgets over safety and protecting his constituents from having their towns become the next East Palestine, Ohio.

In his efforts to pass AB 456 through the Legislature, Doering was met with opposition from the Republican caucuses of both the Assembly and the Senate. In both cases he got the bill passed, but both votes fell directly on party lines. Nevada has Democratic party control in both chambers of their legislature with Lombardo, a Republican, as governor. The resulting friction in Carson City that has manifested itself in a handful of issues, particularly evident in a power struggle over the state’s operating budget.

This heated and very public dispute has led to a scenario where Lombardo is not willing to protect Nevadans from toxic train derailments, in fear that it might be seen as a win for the Democrats in his state.

With political points being of great value in his war with the Nevada Legislature, the calculation is apparently that if another rail disaster happens in Nevada that no one will connect the dots to June 2, 2023, when he decided he would trade your safety for his career prospects.

It is SMART-TD and SLD Doering’s intention to not allow that to happen.

Lombardo thinks that he can gamble using your life, limbs, and livelihoods as his collateral. We need to let him know that he bet wrong.

Please follow the link provided to SMART-TD’s Legislative Action Center to send Lombardo the wake-up call he apparently needs. We need him to find out that we don’t play politics with rail safety. All members, their families, and friends are welcome to join this effort. If you are from Nevada, let’s be sure to let him know that he burnt a vote the next time he’s on the ballot.

SMART-TD celebrates politicians of any party who stand up for our issues, but in this moment, we need to speak with one voice and let all of them know that we refuse to be used as a bargaining chip in petty games.

Brother Doering and the whole legislative team in Nevada fought to do right by the communities they live and work in. AB 456 and every bill in this country deserve a fair shot to be heard and have a decision rendered based on the merit of the legislation, rather than the color of the yard sign of those legislators who chose to sponsor it.

Following suit with the other General Committees of Norfolk Southern, General Chairperson Dan Weir (GO-348), and General Chairperson Joe Borders (GO-346), representing yardmasters on Norfolk Southern properties, announced that on June 2 they reached an agreement with the carrier to provide quality-of-life enhancements for all Norfolk Southern yardmasters.

NS yardmasters will be granted, effective Jan. 1, 2023, and continuing each year after, four paid sick days to be used during the calendar year with unused sick days being paid out at the end of the year. In addition to the four paid sick days, NS yardmasters will be allowed to use up to three personal leave days or single days of vacation as paid sick days after a yardmaster has exhausted the annual sick leave provided in the agreement.

To further enhance this agreement, NS yardmasters’ personal leave days, due but not taken, will be allowed to be carried over to the following year and accumulated without a cap on the number of days that can be banked. NS yardmasters in good standing or whose employment status has been terminated may elect to receive payment for all or any portion of accumulated personal leave days. In the event of the death of the yardmaster, the personal leave days accumulated will be paid to the member’s estate.

Both General Chairman Weir and Borders, along with Alternate Vice President Chris Bartz agreed early on that they would stand firm to get the best possible agreement for the yardmaster craft on Norfolk Southern regarding sick pay. After numerous negotiations, calls and deliberations, the agreement was reached.

GCs Borders and Weir thanked both SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson and Alt. VP Bartz for their leadership and guidance in getting a positive agreement for the membership.

NS becomes first Class I railroad to negotiate paid sick leave for all craft railroaders

ATLANTA, and INDEPENDENCE, OH, June 5, 2023 – Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers — Transportation Division (SMART-TD) announced today that they have reached an agreement with representatives for their final group of craft employees – yardmasters – to provide up to seven paid sick days per year.

The agreement will immediately provide nearly 300 Norfolk Southern yardmasters with four new days of paid sick leave per year while also offering them the flexibility to use up to three additional days of existing paid time off as sick leave.

With this agreement, Norfolk Southern is the first Class I railroad to have negotiated paid sick leave agreements for 100 percent of its craft workforce.

“This agreement will provide our hardworking yardmasters the time they need and deserve to take care of their personal wellbeing,” said Jeremy Ferguson, President of SMART-TD. “I want to thank Norfolk Southern for their partnership on this deal, and for leading the industry as the first railroad to sign sick leave agreements for every one of our dedicated union members. And most importantly, I want to thank our SMART-TD general chairmen, Joe Borders and Dan Weir, for negotiating this important new benefit for Norfolk Southern yardmasters.”

This final paid sick leave agreement for yardmasters builds on the momentum from the comprehensive quality-of-life package that NS and SMART-TD negotiated last month for another group of SMART-TD members – conductors and trainmen. The conductor and trainmen agreement, which included paid sick leave, was ratified by union membership last Friday.

“Following national labor negotiations, we committed to address quality of life issues for our craft railroaders. With today’s agreement, we make good on that promise,” said Norfolk Southern President and CEO Alan Shaw. “I am proud of our team for working collaboratively with union leadership over the last four months to reach agreements that benefit all of our craft colleagues.”

Although this agreement is an important milestone for paid sick leave, Norfolk Southern remains actively engaged with all its labor partners to further explore and negotiate the quality-of-life benefits that will have the greatest positive impact for its employees and position Norfolk Southern as an industry leader and employer of choice.

Read a synopsis of the agreement.

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About Norfolk Southern

Since 1827, Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) and its predecessor companies have moved the goods and materials that drive the U.S. economy. Today, it operates a customer-centric and operations-driven freight transportation network. Committed to furthering sustainability, Norfolk Southern helps its customers avoid 15 million tons of yearly carbon emissions by shipping via rail. Its dedicated team members deliver more than 7 million carloads annually, from agriculture to consumer goods, and is the largest rail shipper of auto products and metals in North America. Norfolk Southern also has the most extensive intermodal network in the eastern U.S., serving a majority of the country’s population and manufacturing base, with connections to every major container port on the Atlantic coast as well as the Gulf of Mexico and Great Lakes. Learn more by visiting www.NorfolkSouthern.com.

About SMART-TD

SMART Transportation Division is comprised of approximately 125,000 active and retired members who work in a variety of different crafts in the transportation industry. These crafts include employees on every Class I railroad, Amtrak, many shortline railroads, bus and mass transit employees and airport personnel. More information about the union is available at www.smart-union.org.

On June 2, 2023, SMART Transportation Division members represented by General Committees of Adjustment GO-898, GO-687 and GO-680, have voted to ratify their tentative agreement with Norfolk Southern and will benefit from increased wages, as well as improvements to their quality of life.

Eligible members participating in the vote approved the new contract with approximately 60% in favor of ratification.

The ratified contract provides for:

  • Additional time off and scheduled rest days;
  • 5 paid sick days with the option to convert up to 2 personal leave days to on-demand sick days;
  • Unused personal leave days can now be carried over and accumulated indefinitely, with no limitations;
  • More predictable scheduling process to use paid leave and vacation days;
  • Compensation increases beyond those already provided for via national bargaining, with shift differential pay for weekend assignments;
  • Continuous detention/held-away pay beginning after 15 hours, paid continuously until the on-duty time at the away-from-home terminal;
  • Increased away-from-home terminal meal allowances;
  • More predictable work and flexibility in time off.

General Chairpersons Tommy Gholson (GO-898), Jim Ball (GO-687), David Phillips (GO-680), Assistant General Chairpersons Andrew Evans (GO-680), Jason Roberts (GO-898) and Brian Sharkey (GO-687), along with SMART-TD Vice President Brent Leonard, negotiated the now-ratified agreement.

Following the tabulation of votes on June 2nd, General Chairperson Ball said, “This is a proud day for all of us who were involved in getting this agreement hammered out. We got our brothers and sisters more compensation, better schedules, and the dignity that comes with having paid sick days so we can take care of our families and not get our coworkers sick in the meantime.”

General Chairperson Gholson said, “These changes have been a long time coming. Our members have been screaming especially for the quality-of-life upgrades that came with this agreement, but in this industry, those improvements have to be fought for. Nothing is given. We knew that going in, and with the help of Vice President Leonard, we got our members a great deal. We want everyone involved to know that we addressed every issue we set out to address and a little more, but the fight is far from over. We have momentum, and we aren’t done advocating for the front-line workers of Norfolk Southern.”

For his part in this win, GC David Phillips said, “This agreement is historic not only for what it brings to the table for the train service crafts, but it also raised the bar to the degree that engineers will see the quality-of-life enhancements negotiated by SMART-TD. The language we worked on for five months set a pattern and a high bar that required the carrier to extend those enhancements
to other crafts. As such, every member of our crew rooms are able to benefit from the fortitude of SMART-TD.

“I have worked as a SMART engineer, and speaking as a SMART engineer, it is very satisfying to see the hard work of SMART benefit those of us working in the Enginemen craft.”

Vice President Leonard was quick to recognize the hard work, professionalism, and experience that the NS general chairpersons brought to the bargaining table was the key to the success of this agreement. He said, “I want to start by congratulating the SMART-TD members of Norfolk Southern on the significant pay raises and quality of life improvements they just obtained. General Chairpersons Phillips, Gholson, and Ball deserve ample recognition for their dedication to hammering out this historic agreement. This is a big win for those General Committees and the members they represent.”

SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson’s reaction to the ratification announcement was, “The rail industry has always been built on the backs of conductors and trainmen. Our NS members and their elected representatives have stood up for themselves and demanded to be compensated both financially and with lifestyle improvements that are more in line with the importance of the work they do. I am excited to see these well-earned victories with sick days and schedule flexibility, and I am hopeful that this win for our NS brothers and sisters leads the way towards similar improvements across the industry.”

Many of us think of the SMART-TD’s Designated Legal Counsel as “The FELA guys” who come to our Local meetings.  Members in Minnesota learned DLC does a lot more for our organization.

The recent two-person crew victory in the state didn’t magically happen. It took many people and many years to pull, push, and drag it over the finish line, says SMART-TD Minnesota State Legislative Director Nick Katich.

And Designated Legal Counsel law firm Hunegs, LeNeave, and Kvas played a major part by stepping up and making a major contribution, he said.

“We got our bills through House and Senate Transportation committees and the next stops were in Judiciary,” Katich said. “While railroaders can speak to why a two-person crew is necessary, it takes a lawyer to testify before Judiciary and be able to cite case law off the cuff.”

HLK had a representative who, in two separate hearings, volunteered his time, talent and vocation to the betterment of rail labor and a successful outcome for the bill.

“I fear we would not have made it out of committee,” said Katich.  “We all owe a debt of gratitude.”

Please thank your DLC for all they do to support our Union, workplace safety, and worker rights.

SMART Transportation Division members represented by GO-953 who work on Union Pacific’s Eastern District, Pacific Northwest, and Idaho Territories ratified a crew-consist agreement that preserves the in-cab conductor position that had been at the center of a court battle and targeted by the carrier for transfer to a nomadic “expediter” role.

The three crafts participating in the vote approved the new contract with more than two-thirds (68.16% aggregate) voting in favor of ratification.

The ratified contract provides for:

  • A $27,500 signing bonus upon the contract’s ratification.
  • Continues to require the conductor’s position as being based in the cab of the locomotive.
  • 30 years of protections for brakemen/switchmen who have assignments abolished.
  • Continued use of brakemen/switchmen as needed.
  • No rules changes regarding switching between road and yard crews
  • Additional pay for assigned road and yard service performed with a reduced crew.
  • Expanded utility position that is paid $50.00 per hour and has a set schedule.
  • Overtime in pool freight.

General Chairperson Luke Edington of Local 286 (North Platte, Neb.) negotiated the successful agreement with assistance from Vice General Chairperson Zach Nagy and Vice President Brent Leonard.

“This was a challenging process, but the result is a contract that our members found to be to their satisfaction,” Edington said. “The conductor’s role is preserved at least until the next round of Section 6 notices in 2024.”

SMART-TD Vice President Brent Leonard had this reaction to ratification of GO-953’s agreement: “This agreement serves to protect the train & yard service crafts and ensures these crafts as the crafts of the future. SMART-TD is the only transportation craft with agreements protecting their position now and into the future and does so without tying their position to that of another craft. Despite the efforts of outsiders who tried to prevent train & yardmen from becoming the highest-paid railroad craft employees, SMART-TD members recognized their value and secured their future. I commend the SMART-TD members for recognizing this and overwhelmingly ratifying the agreement. SMART-TD will continue to lead and secure the future for our members.”

When GC Edington made the vote count known, SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson reacted by saying, “I am very pleased by the membership’s decision to ratify this agreement that all of the involved SMART-TD officers worked so diligently on making the best possible agreement we can all be proud of, while securing our member’s future. All of their hard work proves why we’re the biggest, the best and the first. Failure of the agreement would have led to a reopening of mediation over the carrier’s prior Section 6 notice and exposed the conductor’s position to the potential ‘redeployment’ that Union Pacific had sought.”

GO-953 has members in 48 TD locals and represents workers in Union Pacific’s Eastern, Pacific Northwest and Idaho territories (former Chicago-Northwestern Railway Co.), Kyle, Nebraska Central and Portland Terminal railroads and the Wichita Terminal Association.

Momentum is a powerful force. Right now, it is on rail labor’s side and our leadership is doing a great job of using it to the advantage of our membership. Monday, May 22, Joe Bennett, general chairperson of GO-851, and Brian Killough, general chairperson of GO-513 announced a tentative agreement with CSX to grant paid sick leave to its members.   

This announcement continues the progress that has been made by their counterpart in the northern region of CSX (GO-49) and by the general committees of Norfolk Southern. Paid sick leave has been the goal of railroaders for generations. It is not only the quality-of-life issue that defines our industry but also a validation of the dignity of our profession. Not only were Brothers Bennett and Killough able to get paid sick leave in this tentative agreement, but they were able to gain traction in several other areas as well.   

The tentative agreement synopsis is as follows:  

  • Provides five paid sick with the option to convert two personal days to paid sick days for conductors and trainmen. 
  • Unused sick days are converted to cash at the end of the year with the option to defer those payments into a 401(k).  
  • Incorporates the current 2023 CSX Revised Attendance Policy (the most lenient policy at CSX in decades) as a component of the CBA and is only subject to amendments under the provisions of the Railway Labor Act.  
  • Allows conductors to carry over up to 100 personal days from year to year rather than carrying over just 30 and losing the rest.  
  • Provides improved work/rest initiatives with the formation of a Joint Labor/Management Committee to implement “Smart Rest” options, which could provide for up to 24 hours off between tours of duty and voluntary rest day schedules.  
  • Reintroduces the safety boots program for trainpersons.  
  • Allows local union officials to be reimbursed for lost earnings when they mark off for vacation scheduling rather than just a basic day’s pay rate.  
  • Permits train service employees, when practicable, to drive themselves or their own crew within defined terminal switching limits under limited conditions.  

“We thank CSX CEO Joseph Hinrichs and Executive Vice President Jamie Boychuk for exhibiting flexibility and working with our union in a collaborative manner in reaching this tentative agreement,” SMART Transportation Division President Jeremy Ferguson said. “This serves as a vital first step to giving T&E personnel the paid sick time they deserve, and I am hopeful this accommodation will be soon extended to the employees working under the jurisdiction of all other rail carriers.”  

Brother Killough was quick to give credit for this TA coming together to SMART-TD Vice Presidents J.D. (John) Whitaker and Jamie Modesitt.   

“Brother Whitaker did a great job taking the lead on these negotiations, and Joe and I are excited about the end results. Not only did our team put us in a position to get the paid sick time our people need and deserve, but we got CSX to put the attendance policy into the Collective Bargaining Agreement,” Killough said. “That is a way bigger deal than most people realize. They can’t make a unilateral change to the attendance policy if this passes, and you can’t put a price tag on that kind of progress.”  

Bennett also brought the attendance policy up while he was discussing the advantages of this TA.   

“I’ve been working for CSX since 1998, and in the span of my career, they have had 4 or 5 different attendance policies. Each one was worse than the one it replaced,” he said. “Now we put ourselves in a good situation where they can’t just change our lives by simply sending out a system bulletin.”  

Another item in the agreement that both GCs brought up was the reinstatement of the boot program.   

“When CSX stopped providing safety boots for our men and women, it made a statement. It couldn’t have been a big enough expenditure to have made a real difference to them, but the money and implied downgrade in respect meant a lot to our guys,” Bennett said. “Hopefully, CSX agreeing to reinstate the program is just as good of an indicator of what is on the horizon as losing it was.”   

The boot program’s discontinuation was one of the first moves CSX made as E. Hunter Harrison embarked on implementing Precision Scheduled Railroading.  

Both Bennett and Killough went out of their way to point out that this tentative agreement is not written in stone. Bennett wanted it known that “We worked long and hard on forming this agreement and getting our members the paid sick time they obviously deserve, but it is up to individual locals to vote on whether or not this agreement gets ratified.”  

Per the SMART Constitution, each Local chair will be given the opportunity to cast a ballot, and the fate of this agreement will be decided by a simple majority of this vote.   

Both GCs have reached out to the locals they represent and provided the language of the tentative agreement. They are working to schedule conference calls with their local leaders in hopes of answering any questions they might have and ensuring that accurate information is being provided to the crew bases so they can make their decisions based on facts.  

SMART-TD is grateful to the leadership of Brothers Bennett and Killough for getting this agreement to this point. They have not only made us proud but have made strides to improve the lives of the SMART members they serve. We encourage all the members of these two general committees to read the agreement in its entirety and let your voices be heard in your local meetings. This union is in place to represent you. For SMART-TD to function properly, it requires that you take an active role, especially in matters of this level of importance.  

SMART-TD Minnesota State Legislative Director (SLD) Nick Katich along with the Minnesota State Legislative Board are proud to announce that the morning of May 24, Gov. Tim Walz has signed HF 2887, and a two-person crew minimum for freight trains is now officially the law of the land in the state. 

The massive transportation omnibus bill was passed by the state Legislature May 21st and, along with the minimum crew size provision mandating a crew of two, has infrastructure dollars to bring many more railroad jobs in passenger service to Minnesota.

“The Minnesota Legislative Board began working on minimum crew size in 2015,” Katich said. “At that time, Phil Qualy was director, and I was his assistant. We passed it in the House once and the Senate once, but never together.” Katich was elected in May 2020 after Qualy’s retirement and continued the fight.

The 2023 legislative session in Minnesota has been very fast-paced and intense. Minimum crew size began as its own bill in the Senate with a companion in the House. It was heard and passed through all committees with the railroads very actively opposing it.

“It was difficult when the railroads were testifying to keep a straight face,” commented Katich. “Some of their claims were so false or misleading it would make you sick. Our job was to help the lawmakers see through the smokescreen and we did just that.”

While the stand-alone bills made it back to the floor of both chambers, time was running out to act on them individually, so the decision was made to include the policy in the omnibus bill.

“Our motto with this legislature has been ‘Take yes for an answer,’” Katich said. “Whatever keeps us moving forward.”

In addition to minimum crew size, rail labor chalked up some other wins too. The Northern Lights Express, Amtrak’s passenger service between Duluth and Minneapolis, has been fully funded at $194.7 million. This allows access to matching funds from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and means more work opportunities for our members. Two more state rail safety inspectors, additional funding for passenger rail corridor studies and railroad-provided first responder training are also included.

“We all need to thank our bill’s chief authors, Sen. Jen McEwen (Dist. 8) and Rep. Jeff Brand (Dist. 18A), as well as Transportation Committee Chairs Sen. Scott Dibble (Dist. 61) and Rep. Frank Hornstein (Dist. 61A) for guiding our legislation over the finish line. Their fierce advocacy for rail labor will not be forgotten.

“I would like to personally thank the Minnesota Legislative Board for their unwavering support and confidence, the local officers who volunteered to pitch in, and the members and retirees for keeping track and sending encouragement. I would also add that I would like to thank our friends in the Minnesota AFL-CIO. They had our backs and watched for the railroad lobbyists lurking around where they shouldn’t be.”

Minnesota becomes the third state this year to require two on a crew, following Ohio and Kansas.

SMART-TD would like to congratulate SLD Katich and his team on a job very well done, and we would like to point out that this is the first year of this biennium and we are all excited to see what comes out of year two!

Each year, the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) prepares a Form BA-6, Certificate of Service Months and Compensation, for every railroad employee with creditable railroad compensation in the previous calendar year. The RRB will mail the forms to employees during the first half of June. Anyone with compensation reported in 2022 who has not received Form BA-6 by July 1, or who needs a replacement, should contact an RRB field office by calling toll-free at 1-877-772-5772. A statement can also be requested online by clicking the “Request Documents” button at RRB.gov/myRRB, or by using the toll-free number’s automated menu at the end of the recorded greeting to request a statement of service months and compensation.

Form BA-6 provides employees with a record of their Railroad Retirement service and compensation. The information shown is used to determine whether an employee qualifies for benefits and the amount of those benefits; therefore, it is important that employees review their Form BA-6 to see whether their own records of service months and creditable compensation agree with the form.

When reviewing the 2022 compensation total, employees should be aware that only annual earnings up to $147,000 are creditable for Railroad Retirement purposes in that year, and that $147,000 is the maximum amount shown on the form. In addition, the form shows service credited on a month-by-month basis for 2021, 2020, and 2019, when the maximum creditable compensation was $142,800, $137,700, and $132,900, respectively. The BA-6 also lists the employer(s) reporting the employee’s 2022 service and compensation.

Besides the months of service reported by employers, Form BA-6 shows the number of any additional service months deemed by the RRB. Deemed service months may be credited under certain conditions to an employee who did not work in all 12 months of the year, but had creditable Tier II earnings exceeding the monthly proration of the creditable Tier II earnings maximum for the year. However, the total reported and deemed service months may never exceed 12 in a calendar year, and no service months (reported or deemed) can be credited after retirement, severance, resignation, discharge or death.

The BA-6 form also indicates the number of months of verified military service creditable as service under the Railroad Retirement Act if the service was previously reported to the RRB. Employees are encouraged to submit proofs of age and/or military service in advance of their actual retirement. Filing these proofs with the RRB in advance will streamline the benefit application process and help prevent payment delays.

For employees who received separation or severance payments, the section of the form designated “Taxable Amount” shows the amounts of separation allowance or severance payments that were subject to Railroad Retirement Tier II taxes. This information is shown on the form because a lump sum, approximating part or all of the Tier II taxes deducted from such payments made after 1984, which did not provide additional Tier II credits, may be payable by the RRB upon retirement to qualified employees or to survivors if the employee dies before retirement. The amount of an allowance included in an employee’s regular compensation is shown under “Compensation Amount.”

Form BA-6 also shows, in the section designated “Employee Contributions,” the cumulative amount of Tier II Railroad Retirement payroll taxes paid by the employee over and above Tier I Social Security equivalent payroll taxes. While the RRB does not collect or maintain payroll tax information, the agency computes this amount from its compensation records in order to advise retired employees of their payroll tax contributions for federal income tax purposes.

In the lower-right corner of the form, there is a field that indicates if the employee is eligible to claim unemployment or sickness benefits. The RRB provides detailed instructions for reviewing the form on the agency website at RRB.gov/BA6.

There are instructions on the back of the form and the web page on how to file a protest if service and compensation totals are incorrect. The law limits to four years the period during which corrections to service and compensation amounts can be made. Also, if personal information is incorrect or incomplete, such as the name, birthdate, or address, the employee should contact an RRB field office to have it corrected. For most people, the address of the RRB office serving their area is provided on the form along with the RRB’s nationwide toll-free number (1-877-772-5772).