Summer 2006 - International Brotherhood of Teamsters

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■Amtrak Long-Term Funding: The issue of long-termfunding for Amtrak remained unresolved in 2005. Shorttermfunding was taken care of in appropriations for thecarrier, but long-term funding was still in question. Thereare several bills which would provide much needed longtermfunding.National Negotiations: There is a chance this year thatCongress will move to take part in freight rail negotiations,as a built-in provision of the Railway Labor Act.Remote Control Operations: Remote control is still anissue that remains unresolved. The Conference feels thatthe railroads should not be allowed to run remote controllocomotives free from Federal Railroad Administrationoversight. The Conference continues its opposition to thecurrent state of these operations.Oppose Intrusive Criminal Background Checks: The RailConference considers the following to be an essential partof the background check process to ensure that employerscannot summarily dismiss employees without cause: confidentialityof records, privacy protections, due process proceduresto allow correction of errors and consideration ofmitigating circumstances and a list of criminal offensesthat truly define a security risk continue. The governmentshould require all railroad subcontractors and theiremployees receive standardized training and undergo thesame background checks as required for rail employees.Positive Train Control Systems: PTS is on the NTSB’smost wanted list. This technology would prevent train collisions,over-speed accidents and protect roadway workerwork limits by requiring automatic control systems tooverride mistakes by human operators. Over the last threedecades, the Safety Board has investigated a long list ofcollision accidents in which a positive train control systemthat incorporated collision avoidance could have preventedtrain collisions. While several railroads have taken actionto implement PTC technology, the NTSB feels that theseefforts have been inadequate. The system must not takeaway any of the duties of locomotive engineers and trainmen.The Rail Conference is first and foremost concernedwith protecting the lives of its members. PTC can serve asa tool to make sure locomotive engineers and trainmen gethome alive. However, if the technology is improperlydeployed, the Conference fears that it could distract locomotiveengineers and interfere with their vigilance, endangeringboth the train and its lading, and persons who mayaccess the right of way.Infrastructure Improvements: As seen on the NortheastCorridor and around the country, railroad carriers haveallowed the infrastructure of our nation’s railroads todegrade. Railroad companies must be forced to maintain■■■in Washington, D.C. He has since pleaded guilty. Last year,an accidental crash of a Norfolk Southern train containingchlorine in Graniteville, South Carolina, killed nine peopleand caused hospitalizations and widespread evacuations.House Democrats Blast DHSDemocratic Members of the U.S. House of RepresentativesCommittee on Homeland Security also blasted theDepartment of Homeland Security (DHS) for its failure toissue mandatory security standards for the nation’s railroadsto safeguard the transportation of toxic chemicals.Fifteen members of the Homeland Security Committeesent a letter to DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff on April 3demanding an explanation why his department, on March 31,issued voluntary security guidelines for railroads instead ofenforceable regulations.The Democrats also question why the railroads are notheld to the same high security standards as other modes oftransportation.“The Coast Guard already mandates security standards inour nation’s ports, both to protect our economic infrastructureand to protect the people living nearby,” the Committeewrote. “The Department should be doing the same thing forthe elements of the rail system used to transport TIH (Toxic-By-Inhalation materials) and other hazardous materials.”In the letter the Committee members write: “We areextremely disappointed with your decision not to require railroadsto meet certain security standards regarding the movementof toxic-by-inhalation (TIH) materials by rail. Instead,you have decided to issue recommended security actions thatare purely voluntary.“It is time for your Department to take a more active rolein securing our nation’s rail systems. Terrorists have alreadytargeted rail systems in the past few years.”The Democratic committee members also wrote: “Ournation depends on your Department to ensure there is somelevel of baseline security to prevent terrorist attacks on TIHmaterials transported by rail, and to reduce the consequencesof such an attack. Voluntary standards are not enough.The committee members argue that enforceable regulationsneed to be put in place, echoing the sentiments of the RailConference and other rail labor organizations.Amtrak, National Negotiations onRail Conference AgendaIn addition to the Community Rail Security bills, the RailConference is working on other legislative and bargainingissues in the coming year, including:■■■■Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA)the tracks and the surrounding areas, in spite of the costsof doing so. There were several accidents this year whichoccurred as a result of problems with infrastructure—cracked rails, dark territory.Workers’ Rights: Right-to-work legislation is up for a votein several states. This legislation is an effort to weaken theability of workers to join together and bargain collectively.LM-30 issues: The LM-30 changes by the Department ofLabor have put an undue burden on labor organizations.These changes need to be rolled back. Accountabilityshould not be this difficult to achieve.16 | Rail Teamster | Summer 2006 | www.teamster.orgwww.teamster.org | Summer 2006 | Rail Teamster | 17
Congressman Fightsfo r Rail SafetyU. S . House Com m i t tee Ta kes Aim at Sec u ri ty Is su e sRail Te a m s ter recen t ly met with Rep. James Oberstar( D - M N ) . The con gressman is the chair of the Ho u s e’sTra n s port a ti on and In f ra s tru ct u re Com m i t tee and hasbeen a ch a m p i on of rail mem bers for many ye a r s .The “High Alert” re p o rt was the first publicationthat detailed actual rail employees’ experiences.Do you think having this type of on-theground information helps illustrate rail labor’ssafety and security concern s ?Rail workers are tru ly the eyes and ears of the ra i li n du s try. T h ey are in the most direct po s i ti on to spot sec u-ri ty risks and po ten tial thre a t s , so learning abo ut thei ractual experi en ces with safety and sec u ri ty on our nati on’sra i l roads thro u gh the ‘ Hi gh Al ert’ report is inv a lu a bl e , a n dwi ll become even more so as we con ti nue to deb a te ra i ls a fety and sec u ri ty in this Con gre s s .What is the Tr a n s p o rtation and Infrastru c t u reCommittee doing to keep rail safety and securityat the fore f ront of concerns that the Depart m e n tof Homeland Security should be addre s s i n g ?I introdu ced legi s l a ti on in the 108th Con gress and aga i nin the 109th Con gress that would ad d ress sec u ri ty risks onour nati on’s ra i l road s . S ep a ra tely, I have introdu ced rail safetylegi s l a ti on for the past several Con gresses and I intend toi n trodu ce new rail safety legi s l a ti on this su m m er.Un fort u n a tely, the Rep u blican leadership has ref u s ed tom ove any of these bi ll s . Last ye a r, the Dem oc ra tic leader s h i pof fered my rail sec u ri ty bi ll as an amen d m ent to Hom el a n dS ec u ri ty aut h ori z a ti on and app rop ri a ti ons bi ll s , but thatef fort was again bl ocked by the Rep u blican leader s h i p.My bi ll , H . R . 2 3 5 1 , requ i res the Sec ret a ry of Hom el a n dS ec u ri ty and the Sec ret a ry of Tra n s port a ti on to devel opand implem ent a ra i l road sec u ri ty assessmen t , a ra i l roads ec u ri ty plan, and pri ori ti zed recom m en d a ti ons fori m p roving ra i l road sec u ri ty within 180 days . It requ i re sthe Sec ret a ry of Hom eland Sec u ri ty and the Sec ret a ry ofTra n s port a ti on to exec ute a mem ora n dum of a greem en tgoverning the roles and re s pon s i bi l i ties of the Dep a rtm en tof Hom eland Sec u ri ty and the Dep a rtm ent ofTra n s port a ti on in ad d ressing ra i l road tra n s port a ti on sec u-ri ty matter s .The bi ll aut h ori zes more than $1 bi ll i on to safeg u a rd ourn a ti on’s rail net work from terrorist thre a t s , $500 mill i on ofwh i ch is aut h ori zed for grants to state and local governmen t s , ra i l road carri er s , rail labor, and others for co s t si n c u rred for preven ting or re s ponding to terrorist activi ti e sor other interc i ty passen ger rail and frei ght rail sec u ri tyt h re a t s .Am trak would receive $100 mill i on for sec u ri tyu pgrade s , p lus a total of $597 mill i on to make fire and life -s a fety improvem ents to tunnels on the Northeast Corri dorin New York , Ba l ti m ore , Ma ryland and Wa s h i n g ton , D. C .This funding is cri tical to pro tect Am tra k’s 25 mill i on passen ger s , t wo - t h i rds of wh i ch travel along the targetedNortheast Corri dor.A total of $50 mill i on is aut h ori zed for the Sec ret a ry ofHom eland Sec u ri ty to cre a te a re s e a rch and devel op m en tp rogram to improve frei ght and interc i ty passen ger ra i ls ec u ri ty. The Sec ret a ry of Hom eland Sec u ri ty is alsorequ i red to devel op a nati onal plan for public outre achand aw a reness and a study on passen ger, b a gga ge andc a rgo screen i n g .Moreover, my bi ll focuses on som ething other bi ll si gn ore : the import a n ce of en su ring that key workers have then ece s s a ry su pport and training requ i red to pro tect our ra i ls ys tem , wh et h er those workers are ra i l road em p l oyees orem ergency re s pon der s . H . R . 2351 requ i res rail carri ers top rovi de sec u ri ty training to these workers to en su re that theya re prep a red for po ten tial threat con d i ti on s . The bi ll alsos tren g t h ens wh i s t l ebl ower pro tecti ons to en su re that worker swho report or iden tify a sec u ri ty risk wi ll not face retri buti onor ret a l i a ti on from their em p l oyer s . A rail worker should noth ave to ch oose bet ween doing the ri ght thing on sec u ri ty andhis or her job. D e s p i te wh i s t l ebl ower pro tecti ons in curren tl aw, em p l oyees sti ll experi en ce em p l oyer hara s s m ent andi n ti m i d a ti on wh en reporting acc i den t s , i n ju ries and others a fety con cern s . My bi ll en su res that wi ll en d .The legi s l a ti on also en su res that em ergency re s pon ders area ble to get re a l - time inform a ti on for dealing with hazardo u sm a terials and passen ger ra i l road incidents thro u gh theDan Gates, BMWED Government Affairs Director and Rep. James Oberstar (D-MN)Opera ti on Re s pond In s ti t ute . The bi ll provi des Opera ti onRe s pond with $2.5 mill i on for fiscal years 2005 thro u gh2007 for dep l oying and expanding the Opera ti on Re s pon dE m ergency In form a ti on Sys tem sof t w a re , devel oping andi m p l em en ting a ra i l road infra s tru ct u re mapping progra m ,and establishing an alert and messaging capabi l i ty for usedu ring em ergencies invo lving frei ght and passen ger ra i l road s .Fi n a lly, the bi ll inclu des legi s l a ti on that the House hasoverwh el m i n gly passed in previous Con gre s s e s , the Ra i lPa s s en ger Disaster Fa m i ly As s i s t a n ce Act , wh i ch en su res thatthe needs of the families of the vi ctims of terrorist attacks oracc i dents are ad d re s s ed . This bi ll was similar to legi s l a ti onwe en acted in 1996 to ad d ress the tre a tm ent of families ofthe vi ctims of a i rline cra s h e s . We should do no less for thosewho ch oose to ri de our nati on’s passen ger tra i n s .What can our members do to urge Congress tomake substantial security and safety re q u i rementsthat the rail corporations must follow?E n co u ra ge your mem bers to call or wri te their mem ber sof Con gress and urge them to co s pon s or and pass legi s l a ti on ,su ch as H.R. 2 3 5 1 , to stren g t h en rail safety and sec u ri ty now.Do you think that the railroad bombings inMadrid and London had any substantive impacton rail security policy in the U.S.? Or do youthink that the attacks only provided a temporaryup-tick in attention to the issue?The terrorist attacks in Mad rid and Lon don shouldh ave served as a wake-up call to this Con gress and thisad m i n i s tra ti on . The fact is that the federal govern m entis spending more than $4 bi ll i on a year on avi a ti ons ec u ri ty but it’s spending just over $100 mill i on on ra i ls ec u ri ty, even though five times as many people taketrains as planes every day. The frei ght ra i l roads haveadopted some sec u ri ty measu res and Am trak hast a ken some prec a uti ons to en su re passen ger safety ands ec u ri ty, but the ra i l roads can’t do the job them s elve s .The federal govern m ent must take the lead in en su ri n gthat the nece s s a ry steps are taken to ad d ress sec u ri tyrisks on our nati on’s ra i l road s , while protecting railp a s s en ger s , rail worker s , and citi zens who live or work18 | Rail Teamster | Summer 2006 | www.teamster.orgwww.teamster.org | Summer 2006 | Rail Teamster | 19
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Summer 2006 - International Brotherhood of Teamsters

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