SMART Rail, Mechanical and Engineering (RME) members employed by San Diego Trolley Inc. (SDTI) in San Diego, Calif., and North County Transit District (NCTD) in Oceanside, Calif., have elected a new slate of officers to guide Local 398 into the future.
Local 398 is responsible for the representation and enforcement of collective bargaining agreements for the majority of the public service employees within the SMART RME Department.
“There is an ongoing internal organizing campaign on both employers, and we have seen an increase in local union membership over the past 12 months. We look to build on that momentum, grow our local union membership and fight for the rights of our sisters and brothers,” said Financial Secretary-Treasurer Travis Malmin.
When Local 398 was relocated to San Diego, the members needed a place to come together. In a strong show of solidarity, SMART SM Local 206 opened the doors of McClees Hall to our brothers and sisters and provided space for members to gather for union meetings.
“Local 206 and Business Manager Dave Gauthier were gracious enough to allow us space to hold our membership meetings,” said Troy Teague, Local 398 vice president. “It is good to know that our union has resources that allow our members to meet and discuss their issues and concerns.”
Pictured, left to right: Travis Malmin (recording secretary/financial secretary-treasurer), Raymond (Joey) Flores (trustee), Troy Teague (vice president/ warden/conductor), Brandon Watson (president/local chairperson), Chache Rolison (trustee), Raymond Probst (trustee), Gabriel Puente (trustee). Not pictured: Juan Arias (trustee).
SMART and Local 398 are currently in contract negotiations with SDTI, aiming to secure a new agreement by the year’s end. Local union officers are engaging with each department in order to finalize additional proposals prior to the next bargaining session.
“I feel honored to be elected as the president and local chairperson of Local 398, and I look forward to obtaining the best possible outcome for my coworkers at SDTI,” said Brandon Watson.
From local union visits to new member organizing, the SMART RME Department is actively working to strengthen and grow our union. Read updates on the department’s recent activities:
SMART RME International representatives visit local unions
SMART RME International Representative Joe Fraley and RME Department Director Peter Kennedy have been engaging with RME members at union meetings, visiting Locals 78 (Little Rock, Ark.), 165 (Argentine, Kan.), 256 (Chicago, Ill.), 462 (Huntington, W.Va.) and 472 (Topeka, Kan.) To provide information about local representative training, member engagement and other resources that are available for officers and members.
“Keep an eye out for meeting notifications in the future — we will be visiting remaining locals in 2024,” said Kennedy.
Local 472 meeting attendees: Jacob Crump, David Samuels, Lloyd Long, Corey Kious, David Streeter, David Dains, Travis Morgan, Jesse Drake, Jesse Thomas, Preston Cummings, Brennan Walker, James Smith, Craig Snyder, Brady Haddock, Rich Mohr
RME Department conducts trainings for local union officers
In November 2023, General Committee 2 officers, with assistance from International representatives, provided training to local union chairpersons for claim and grievance handling, as well as the representation of members at disciplinary hearings. The training, held in Chicago, marked the second of its kind for local chairpersons. The department also held its first training for newly elected recording secretaries and financial secretary-treasurers in Washington, DC.
“These training courses are offered at no cost to the local unions, as costs associated with the training are covered by General Committee 2 and the International,” explained Fraley. “These sessions will continue In 2024, again at no cost to local unions. Each local is encouraged to send their elected officers to these courses.”
RME training in Washington, DCLocal 256 meeting attendees: Pete Fiore, Rick Flores, Jacob Orseno, Matthew Del Real, Gilbert Santiago, Christopher Pasowisty, Dominick Horne Sr., Erik Ortega, John Sutton
SMART RME wins National Mediation Board election for RailTerm employees
On November 16, 2023, the RME Department won a representation election for employees working at RailTerm. This marks another organizing victory for SMART as we work to bring new members into our union.
“Negotiations will begin in the near future,” said Fraley. “We are proud to represent the RailTerm employees and are ready to negotiate an agreement with the company.”
Topeka shop visit: Dave SamuelsTopeka shop visit: Randy Medilen
SMART RME Director Peter Kennedy speaks on rail safety in front of a House roundtable.
SMART Rail, Mechanical and Engineering Department Director Peter Kennedy joined fellow rail workers and community witnesses to stand for rail safety during a roundtable hosted by Democratic members of the House Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials on Wednesday, March 13.
Kennedy – along with Vince Verna of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen; Mayor Frank Moran of Hiram, Ga. (the site of a 2021 derailment); East Palestine, Ohio resident Anna Sevi-Doss and others – testified to the devastating effects of deregulation on the railroad, and the need for Congress to pass the bipartisan Railway Safety Act.
“Everybody knows the story: rail safety has deteriorated under precision scheduled railroading [PSR],” Kennedy explained in his opening statement. “It’s nothing more than a cost-cutting business operating model that is founded upon the root of all evil, which is the love of money. The sole focus is to maximize profits for shareholders.”
Watch video of the House roundtable.
The Railway Safety Act was introduced in the wake of the East Palestine derailment and explosion in February 2023 by Senators Sherrod Brown and J.D. Vance of Ohio, Bob Casey and John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and by Representative Chris Deluzio in the House. However, amidst concentrated lobbying against the bill by the railroad carriers, there has been no progress made towards a full vote in either chamber.
Democratic Congressmembers Rick Larsen and Donald Payne, Jr. hosted the March 2024 roundtable – titled “Listening to Rail Workers and Communities” – to “help get rail safety legislation back on track,” according to Larsen.
“Simply put, what we are seeing today in the freight rail industry is efforts to take shortcuts on labor safety and service, all in the pursuit of profits, while we see bigger profits for the railroads – meaning more dividends for shareholders,” Payne said.
Reps. Larsen and PayneRep. DeluzioMembers of Congress listen to rail workers’ testimony
Throughout the hearing, members of Congress, citizens and union leaders all described the fraught conditions that both workers and ordinary Americans experience as a result of deregulation and corporate greed. Kennedy outlined the adverse effects on safety, as well as shippers and the industry as a whole, that occur when the carriers cut services and equipment maintenance. Even worse, he told subcommittee members, are the drastic workforce reductions in the industry.
“As Vince said, over 30% of the workforce has been eliminated. With respect to the Mechanical Department employees, 41% of the workforce has been eliminated since PSR,” Kennedy explained. “And what’s crazy is, the cuts are still happening.”
“It’s absolutely asinine,” he added. “There’s not enough workers to perform this critical safety work on locomotives and rail cars in this country. That’s what it boils down to.”
The Railway Safety Act would implement a variety of safeguards to keep Americans and railroaders safe, including a nationwide mandate for well-trained two-person crews on all freight trains; restrictions on train length and weight; regulations on the installation, frequency, upkeep and response to wayside defect detectors; and much more. SMART RME, TD and rail labor organizations throughout the country have urged lawmakers to pass these common-sense regulations in the 12-plus months since the bill’s introduction, as states including Minnesota, New York, Ohio and Kansas have themselves passed rail safety legislation.
“We need both sides of the aisle to make freight rail safety a priority,” Kennedy concluded. “We need meaningful change to the industry. We need Congress to act now, and I thank Ranking Members Larsen and Payne for hosting a roundtable discussion to discuss ongoing and unaddressed rail safety issues.”
WASHINGTON, DC – The shop craft unions at Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Railway are urgently callinguponthe Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to initiate unannounced focus inspections on all locomotives and rail cars owned and leased by BNSF Railway, and immediately issue non-compliance orders requiring BNSF to fix all found defects before being permitted to use such equipment, citing concerns over numerous defects that are allegedly being ignored and neglected by BNSF management.
The lettercomes on the heels of BNSF’s recent announcement of over 362 furloughs in the shop craft unions, further exacerbating concerns over safety and maintenance practices. The defects and recent extreme cuts to the workforce pose serious safety risks to railroad operations and personnel.
Many furloughed employees may be forced to accept positions with lower pay and fewer benefits, potentially disrupting their lives and livelihoods.
In a letteraddressed to FRA Administrator Amit Bose, the shop craft unions at BNSF highlighted their ongoing efforts to address safety and maintenance issues within the railroad industry. The letter referenced a meeting held on December 19, 2023, during which the shop craft unions presented evidence of significant workforce reductions within the mechanical departments of Class I freight railroads, including a staggering 41% decrease in employees since 2015.
Reports received by the shop craft unions indicate that BNSF managers that have been under pressure to perform work without an adequate number of workers, may have instructed workers to release locomotives and rail cars for service that have not been adequately inspected or repaired, effectively disregarding federally mandated safety inspections and fabricate of inspection reports, purportedly as part of cost-cutting measures aimed at maximizing shareholder profits.
“BNSF’s actions represent a reckless disregard for the safety and integrity of our nation’s railways,” said the shop craft unions. “BNSF has recently admitted in public filings that they would not be in compliance with federally mandated safety inspections, and we continue to be informed that BNSF has numerous FRA defects on their locomotives and rail cars. There is no shortage of profits for BNSF, and there is no shortage of work to be performed on BNSF equipment. There is simply an obscene shortage of workers and disregard for people at BNSF. By prioritizing cost-cutting over safety, BNSF is placing its employees and the public at risk. In light of these developments, we have urged the FRA to take immediate action to ensure the safety of BNSF operations. Random audits and focus inspections are essential to holding BNSF accountable and preventing further compromises to safety.”
The shop craft unions at BNSF are calling upon the FRA to prioritize the safety of railroad workers and the integrity of railroad operations by promptly conducting inspections of BNSF locomotives and rail cars located at or in transit to all BNSF Locomotive Maintenance Inspection Terminals (LMITs).
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The Shop Craft Unions are, in alphabetical order: The Brotherhood of Railroad Carmen Division, TCU/IAM (BRC), the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) , the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers (IBB), the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), the National Conference of Fireman and Oilers, Local 32BJ/SEIU (NCFO), the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers Mechanical Department (SMART MD), the Transportation Communications Union (TCU) and the Transport Workers Union of America (TWU).
During a financial secretary-treasurers meeting at SMART International headquarters in Washington, DC, several SMART Rail, Mechanical and Engineering (RME) Department members received their 15-year service awards. Pictured, left to right: Erik Marro from Local 31 (Harmon, New York); Rob Ussery of Local 78 (Little Rock, Arkansas); SMART International Representative C. Joseph Fraley of Local 31; Rob Kaminskey from Local 149 (New York City); and Arnold Fernandes from Local 139 (Boston, Mass.).
