News Archive
FMCSA pre-employment requirement in effect Jan. 6
On November 4, 2022, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse published information titled “Pre-employment Investigations for Drug and Alcohol Program Violations.” The Clearinghouse notice (see below) is a reminder to certain employers regarding a change requirement that went into effect Jan. 6, 2023. On that date, three years of violation data […]
Railroad Retirement and Unemployment Insurance Taxes in 2023
The amounts of compensation subject to Railroad Retirement Tier I and Tier II payroll taxes will go up in 2023, while the tax rates on employers and employees will stay the same. In addition, unemployment insurance contribution rates paid by railroad employers will include a surcharge of 1.5%, down from 3.5% in 2022, due to […]
Action needed to support Congressional Workers Union
This is a call to action. The burning wreckage of what used to be the Grand Old Party (GOP) is attempting to attack the labor movement immediately after the holidays while our guard is down and as the transition to the new Congress occurs. SMART is asking you to take action and contact your congressional […]
FRA issues second safety advisory in two weeks’ time
The Federal Railroad Administration published a safety bulletin Dec. 29 regarding an unintended release of a train’s air brakes while stopped at a signal. The text of the advisory as published in the Federal Register is reproduced below. FRA is issuing Safety Advisory 2022-02 to make the rail industry aware of a recent issue encountered by a […]
Holiday message from TD President Jeremy Ferguson
Brothers and sisters — The year is drawing to a close and we have put the nation on notice. We transportation workers are the definition of essential, and as the nation struggles with a major weather event with zero-degree temperatures and face-numbing sub-zero wind-chills, our members are out doing their jobs. Some may forget that. […]
More than 13,000 comments received for FRA’s Rule of 2
The SMART Transportation Division would like to thank all of you for your historic response to the FRA’s Notice of Public Rulemaking (NPRM) on Freight Train Crew Size. In the moment when our livelihood and the safety of all involved was on the line, SMART members, along with their friends and families, answered the bell […]
FRA issues safety bulletin
The Federal Railroad Administration’s Office of Railroad Safety issued the following bulletin on Dec. 20, 2022: SUBJECT: Pre-Departure Inspections – Appendix D to 49 CFR Part 215 The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is investigating a recent fatal accident when a train operating on the mainline struck a piece of angle iron protruding from a freight […]
Union organizes rallies on Capitol Hill, elsewhere
WASHINGTON – SMART Transportation Division organized rallies in multiple locations Dec. 13 to bring attention to rail-related issues, including maintaining the current safe level of a minimum two-person crew in the cabs of locomotives, paid sick leave for workers and an end to the carriers’ Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR) scheme. A solidarity rally took place […]