Train workers on right track?
Amid some gains, railroaders are still seeking changes when it comes to quality-of-life issues
OMAHA, Neb. — The contract imposed on railroad workers last fall didn’t resolve their quality-of-life issues, but already this year there are indications the major freight railroads are starting to address some of their concerns about demanding schedules that keep many of them on call 24/7 without paid sick time.
Still, most workers and their unions are skeptical of the railroads because they say they have yet to see meaningful actions toward improving their lives on the job.
“I hope that they’re serious about putting their employees first. But the track record is less than stellar,” longtime Union Pacific engineer Ross Grooters said recently while on his way to work in Iowa.
Grooters is a leader with the Railroad Workers United coalition that tries to help workers in all 12 rail unions fight for better conditions.
The early signs of progress include a Union Pacific pilot program in the Kansas City area that’s testing out a new schedule for engineers that lets them plan on having four days off in a row after working 11 days straight. In addition, CSX made a set of changes to its attendance policy this month that allows workers to take time off for medical appointments without being penalized and eases the formula for docking workers points when they miss shifts.
There are other negotiations about these quality-of-life issues going on at all the major railroads. Those talks started after Congress blocked 115,000 rail workers from going on strike in December and forced them to accept a five-year deal that included 24% raises and $5,000 in bonuses but didn’t address these other concerns. Lawmakers and President Joe Biden said they had to intervene because the dire economic consequences of a rail strike would be too great.
Csxceojoehinrichssaid lastweekthathe’sencouraged by the progress his railroad is making in those conversations with its unions, but he wouldn’t go into any detail or predict how quickly changes might be made. There are some railroad jobs that have fairly regular schedules, but many do not. Train crews, in particular, are largely forced to be on call all the time.
Workers and their unions say those unpredictable schedules, combined with the strict attendance rules railroads put in place after eliminating one-third of all their jobs in recent years while overhauling their operations, make it hard to take time off for any reason.
Engineer Travis Dye said the new schedules Union Pacific has been testing out with about 60 workers on a run between Kansas City, Missouri, and Coffeyville, Kansas, since November got him to stop thinking about leaving the railroad. Even if it meant taking a pay cut, Dye said he was considering getting another job.
“It just got to the point where if something hadn’t changed, it just wasn’t worth staying,” Dye said. “I think a lot of guys feel that way too — not just me. I know there’s a lot of guys who are still actively looking.”
Dye said being able to make definite plans with his family or knowing he can tackle a project around the house is amazing. All too often, he said he has had to cancel plans he’s made with his 16-yearold daughter after she’d already circled something on the calendar she wanted to do with him.
“That’s huge for me not to have to break her heart,” said Dye, 40.