What are my rights if I'm injured in a hired van?

By Mark AllenCoordinator of UTU Designated Legal Counsel Railroad workers sometimes jokingly say they spend more time in vans than trains as railroads transport their workers using contract limousine services. As agents of the railroad, these companies may be held to the same [...]

Keeping your heart healthy will pay dividends

By Dr. Norman K. BrownUTU Medical Consultant “Doctor, I have this pain in the center of my chest, which feels like pressure or tightening. It starts when I am exerting myself or under stress, and subsides completely when I stop to rest for just a minute or two.” I [...]

Fatigue killing railroad crews

LOS ANGELES — When a Union Pacific freight train thundered into tiny Macdona, Texas, just before dawn June 28, the engineer and conductor had clocked more than 60 hours in the previous week, working the long, erratic shifts that are common in the railroad industry, acco [...]

Jump-start your retirement NOW!

With a little luck, and after a lifetime of hard work, most UTU members, whether employed by the rail, bus or airline industry, should be able to look forward with optimism to their retirement. Healthy and secure in the knowledge that their savings, benefits and investments w [...]

NTSB’s Hersman favors adequate rest

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Debbie Hersman is the first member of the 37-year-old National Transportation Safety Board to bring to the job a detailed knowledge of railroads, reports Railway Age magazine. Hersman was confirmed by the Senate in June following five years as a senio [...]

NTSB's Hersman favors adequate rest

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Debbie Hersman is the first member of the 37-year-old National Transportation Safety Board to bring to the job a detailed knowledge of railroads, reports Railway Age magazine. Hersman was confirmed by the Senate in June following five years as a senio [...]

Recognize a stroke’s warning signs

By Dr. Norman K. BrownUTU Medical Consultant Most of us would agree that we should do all we can to preserve and protect the working of our brains, the part of us that makes us who we are and different from each other. Aside from head injuries, the most common damage to our b [...]

Recognize a stroke's warning signs

By Dr. Norman K. BrownUTU Medical Consultant Most of us would agree that we should do all we can to preserve and protect the working of our brains, the part of us that makes us who we are and different from each other. Aside from head injuries, the most common damage to our b [...]

New hope for the sleepless

By Norman K. Brown, M.D.UTU Medical Consultant Difficulty getting a good night’s sleep has been a problem of men and women since the beginning of time. Stress, stimulants such as caffeine, illness and irregular work schedules all are well recognized by all of us as caus [...]