BLET, SMART TD members urged to call Congress in support of two-person crew bill

CLEVELAND, OH - January 20 - The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and  Trainmen (BLET) and the Transportation Division of the International  Association of Sheet Metal, Rail Air and Transportation Workers (SMART  TD) are urging their respective memberships to contact members of the  House of Representatives about co-sponsoring The Safe Freight Act of  2017 (H.R. 233), a bill that would mandate two-person train crews on  freight trains — one certified locomotive engineer and one certified  conductor.

Introduced by Congressman Don Young (R-Alaska) Jan. 3, 2017, The Safe Freight Act states in part: ”Effective 30 days after the date of enactment of the Safe Freight Act of 2017, no freight train or  light engine used in connection with the movement of freight may be  operated unless it has a crew consisting of at least 2 individuals, one  of whom is certified under regulations promulgated by the Federal  Railroad Administration as a locomotive engineer pursuant to section  20135, and the other of whom is certified under regulations promulgated  by the Federal Railroad Administration as a conductor pursuant to  section 20163.”

The current two-person crew bill mirrors  legislation that was introduced in the 2016 Congress, which garnered 69  co-sponsors in the House of Representatives.

Now is the time to speak up and voice your support for two-person train crews! All active and retired members of the BLET and SMART TD, as well as  their Auxiliary Representatives, should contact their House  Representatives and ask them to Co-Sponsor H.R. 233, the Safe Freight  Act of 2017.

SMART TD and BLET members: Please visit the SMART  TD Legislative Action Center (LAC) where you can easily find and contact your representative and urge him or her to support H.R. 233. Click here to visit the LAC and let your voice be heard!

Members can also call the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121, and ask  to speak with the House of Representative member from your Congressional District. Contact information can also be found online here.

Earlier this month, the BLET secured a significant victory for rail workers  from the highest court in the United States to protect two-person train  crews. On January 9, the United States Supreme Court denied a petition  filed by the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway asking that the nation’s  highest court review and set aside the 2015 finding by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals that the railroad’s use of managers in place of union  conductors was a major dispute under the Railway Labor Act.

The  issue of two-person train crews has been in the national spotlight since the July 6, 2013, derailment of a Montreal, Maine & Atlantic  (MM&A) oil train in Lac-Megantic, Quebec, which killed 47 people and destroyed the center of the town. The MM&A train was crewed by a  single person. Since that time, there has also been movement by major  freight railroads to seek collective bargaining agreements to allow for  widespread use of one-person train operations. SMART TD and BLET have  lobbied to protect two-person crews as being paramount to safety.

“The nationwide fight over operating crew size is far from over, and we are  urging all BLET and SMART TD Brothers and Sisters to contact their  member of Congress on this extremely important issue,” BLET National President Dennis R. Pierce said. ”In spite of what the railroads might  say, technology has not advanced to the point that it can replace the  eyes and ears of railroad professionals. Please do your part as the job  you save may be your own.”

"We will continue our tireless and  years-long work of supporting a minimum of two crew members on all  trains. An overwhelming majority of Americans from both political  parties support this measure: the American people have spoken and are in favor of this bill. It is past time for our government to get on track, do the right thing and support H.R. 233. This measure is a matter of  domestic safety and security for railroad workers, passengers, our  cities, towns and our entire nation,” said SMART TD President John  Previsich.

President Pierce and President Previsich both thanked Congressman Young for introducing the bill.

A full copy of H.R. 233 can be viewed at www.Congress.gov.

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The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen represents nearly  57,000 professional locomotive engineers and trainmen throughout the  United States. The BLET is the founding member of the Rail Conference,  International Brotherhood of Teamsters.

The SMART Transportation  Division (SMART TD) is headquartered in the Cleveland suburb of North  Olmsted, Ohio. It is a broad-based, transportation labor union  representing more than 125,000 active and retired railroad, bus, mass  transit and airline workers in the United States. It is a division of  the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and  Transportation Workers based in Washington, D.C.