TheVoiceOfJoyce Railroad safety is a major concern for all Americans. Because Railroad workers were unable to strike for less hours, paid leave benefits and are not able to voice their concerns about safety issues, our Railroads aren’t safe. They’re not maintained or staffed properly, while the major Railroads made $20 Billion in profits and repurchased $22 Billion in stock. Once again labor suffers while the shareholders and executives are rewarded. We’re in the 2 nd Gilded Age and that’s why prices are inflated. When does labor get a fair deal? When can Americans rest easy, knowing their air is free of toxicity?

Posted on by jaslvr

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/feb/20/ohio-derailment-train-rail-workers

Workers and union officials cited the Norfolk Southern Railway derailment in early February as a glaring example of why safety reforms to the industry – which include providing workers with paid sick leave – need to be made.

Thirty-eight cars on the train derailed in the town of East Palestine, near the Pennsylvania border, including 11 cars carrying hazardous materials that incited an evacuation order, a controlled release of chemicals, and fears of harmful chemical exposure to residents, wildlife and waterways.

‘Trust the government’: EPA seeks to reassure Ohio residents near toxic spill

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Unions and rail companies have been at loggerheads for years over new contracts that would address what workers describe as poor working conditions, and would provide paid sick days amid grueling schedules caused by labor cuts.

“Without a change in the working conditions, without better scheduling, without more time off, without a better work-life balance, the railroad is going to suffer,” said Ron Kaminkow, the general secretary of Railroad Workers United, an Amtrak engineer in Reno, Nevada, and the vice-president of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (Blet) local 51. “It’s just intrinsic, with short staffing. Corners get cut and safety is compromised.”

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