The Rail Unions comprising the Coordinated Bargaining Coalition (CBC), negotiating together in the current round of National Negotiations, have issued the following statement:

The CBC and the nation’s Rail Carriers first met concerning the November 1, 2019 Section 6 Notices in January 2020. Although the COVID 19 Pandemic has made meetings for groups of this size challenging, the parties continued to meet virtually to make presentations concerning their proposals throughout 2020. Additional meetings have now been scheduled for early 2021.

While CBC and the Rail Carriers continue to share and discuss all aspects of what would be necessary to reach a voluntary agreement, the Rail Carriers have not made any proposals worthy of consideration by the membership of the CBC Unions. The parties will continue to meet in good faith as we move into 2021, fully cognizant that it is our members who must ratify any voluntary agreement.

Click here to read the release from the Coordinated Bargaining Coalition.

The post National Negotiations – Update from the Coordinated Bargaining Coalition appeared first on IAMAW.

“I would like to thank the members for voting and their perseverance to get this contract completed,” said TCU Vice President Artie Maratea. “I would especially like to thank TCU Assistant National Representative Katrina Coleman for her efforts, hard work and dedication.”

Click here to view the contract.

The post SEPTA-TCU Carmen Ratify Contract appeared first on IAMAW.

We at TCU expect this round of bargaining to be long and very contentious. As reflected in the industry’s Section 6 Notices upon us, they’re singing the same old sorry song; we’re over paid, our healthcare is too rich, and our work rules need to be eliminated. TCU President Bob Scardelletti said, “This is not going to happen…We know the deck is stacked against us, but we also know we have overcome insurmountable odds against us in the past and we will again this time. We will because our cause is just and right.”

Click here to read the Clerk Section 6 Notice.

Click here to read the Carmen Section 6 Notice.

The post National Bargaining – TCU and TCU Carmen Division Serve Section 6 Notices on the Industry appeared first on IAMAW.

TO ALL LOCAL LODGE OFFICERS IN NATIONAL HANDLING

Dear Sisters and Brothers:
The industry, in their zeal to take us on, served their Section 6 Notices on Day 1, November 1, 2019. The industry is seeking sweeping concessions across the board on every aspect of our agreements. To that, I say, this is not going to happen.

The carrier’s Section 6 Notices and their press release were distributed that same day, November 1, 2019 via Flash News and was posted on our website for all to see.

The TCU Section 6 Notices covering Carmen and Clerks will be served shortly. Everyone will be provided with copies and they will be posted on the website for all to see. So here we go, another round. I will tell you, with absolute certainty, that if we win the Presidential election, we have a decent shot at getting a decent contract. If Trump is reelected we are in for a very tough battle. The Mediation Board with its 2 Republican members are 100% against us and the White House sides with the industry. We desperately need to win the Presidency next November to give us a level playing field.

Click here to read the full letter:

The post President Scardelletti Communicates with Local Lodge Officers on National Handling appeared first on IAMAW.

Top leaders of 10 rail unions announced that their organizations will be participating in coordinated bargaining in the round of national negotiations that began on November 1, 2019. The unions comprising the Coordinated Bargaining Coalition are:

• American Train Dispatchers Association (ATDA)
• Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen / Teamsters Rail Conference (BLET)
• Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS)
• International Association of Machinists (IAM)
• International Brotherhood of Boilermakers (IBB)
• National Conference of Firemen & Oilers/SEIU (NCFO)
• International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW)
• Transport Workers Union of America (TWU)
• Transportation Communications Union / IAM (TCU)
• Transportation Division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers (SMART–TD)

The following statement was jointly issued by ATDA President Leo McCann, BLET National President Dennis Pierce, BRS President Jerry Boles, IAM General Vice President – Transportation Sito Pantoja, IBB Director of Railroad Lodge Services John Mansker, IBEW Railroad Department Director Bill Bohne, NCFO President John Thacker, SMART–TD President Jeremy Ferguson, TWU Railroad Division Director John Feltz, and TCU National President Bob Scardelletti:

“We are pleased to announce the creation of the Coordinated Bargaining Coalition as we are on the threshold of the most critical round of national bargaining in a generation. Our Coalition is founded on two key values that we all share. One is that we understand the importance of each Union’s autonomy to pursue membership-specific goals within a framework of broad solidarity to defend and improve the wages, benefits and working conditions of our members. The other is that we will spare no effort to defeat the attack by the railroads on the very foundation of our members’ economic security.”

TCU and the TCU Carmen Division are pleased to be part of this coalition,” said TCU President Bob Scardelletti. “By working together, we are hopeful that we can reach the best agreement possible for all rail workers.”

Jointly, the Coordinated Bargaining Coalition unions represent more than 105,000 railroad workers covered by the various organizations’ national agreements and comprise over 80% of the workforce who will be impacted by this round of negotiations.

Click here to see the press release from the Coordinated Bargaining Coalition.

Rail Carriers Serve Section 6 Notice in National Bargaining

On November 1st the National Carriers Conference Committee served section 6 notices on TCU and TCU Carmen Division, along with all other rail unions in national bargaining.

Click here to read section 6 notice.

The industry is seeking sweeping concessions across the board in every aspect of our agreements.

“Suffice it so say, this is not gonna happen!” said TCU President Bob Scardelletti.

Click here to read the press release from the National Carriers Conference Committee.

TCU and TCU Carmen Division are in the process of preparing the unions Section 6 notice that will be served in the coming weeks. It will provide for substantial wage increases, improvements in our health and welfare and other benefit increases.

It is important for all members involved in national negotiations to review the company’s demands, the demands put it clearly in perspective what the company thinks of us and illustrates the difficulties that we face in this current round of national negotiations.

The post 2019 National Negotiations appeared first on IAMAW.

We are in the process of preparing our Section 6 Notice for both Clerical and Carmen Crafts, to be served in November on the national rail carriers for the bargaining round beginning January 1, 2020.

In July, surveys were distributed to all Clerical and Carmen Local Chairpersons with members in National Handling. The surveys included multiple general bargaining categories that we believed to be the most important issues to focus on in National bargaining. Local Chairpersons were asked to survey their members at union meetings and by all other means available to them in order to gauge how issues should be ranked for this round of bargaining, and to report those results by submitting the survey by September 30th. Surveys were also posted on our website and Facebook page so that members could view them, and on these sites members were encouraged to contact their Local Chairperson and make their bargaining priorities known.

The results resoundingly put General Wage Increases and Health and Welfare as the main subjects that are of paramount importance. Accordingly, our Section 6 Notice will reflect this when we serve in November.

We anticipate a very difficult round of bargaining. While the National Negotiating Committee will focus on these two issues above all else, the other categories will be reached in order of importance to our membership as possible. Vacation, Sick leave benefits and personal leave days were the next three top issues ranked as most important to our membership.

Thank you to all that participated in this effort to ensure that the interests of our membership are best represented at the bargaining table.

The post National Bargaining – Survey Results appeared first on IAMAW.

“We are anticipating a very difficult round of bargaining, given that we have both a Republican President and a Republican National Mediation Board, and every Trump appointment at every agency we work with has been anti-union. We will be walking into a hostile environment before we even get started. We must be prepared for massive resistance. The Trump administration has relentlessly attacked American workers, taking chunks out of their rights wherever it can. This further emboldens the Carriers. The Rail Industry can rely on a political atmosphere that fosters corporate greed without being checked and trades decency and compassion for bottom lines,” said National President Scardelletti. He then said, “A fair contract for rail workers that provides for adequate wage increases and other benefits is what your union will be seeking.”

In anticipation of this fight, and in order to establish what the central issues to our membership are going into this next round of national bargaining, we have developed a survey that includes general categories that we believe are the most important issues for us to be focused on.

On July 1, 2019, separate Carmen and Clerical bargaining surveys were distributed to all Local Chairpersons with members expected to be covered under the next National Freight Agreement. In it, they are asked to rank the bargaining topics in order of importance according to their membership.

Members are encouraged to contact their Local Chairperson and make their bargaining priorities known.

The Carmen survey can be viewed here.

The Clerical survey can be viewed here.

The post BARGAINING SURVEYS DISTRIBUTED TO ALL CLERICAL AND CARMEN LOCAL CHAIRPERSONS IN NATIONAL FREIGHT HANDLING AHEAD OF NEXT ROUND OF NEGOTIATIONS appeared first on IAMAW.

“The NMB’s rule is an attempt by government officials to hand even more power to corporations at the expense of working people. Not only is this rule unnecessary, but it is ill-timed and tone deaf to the needs of aviation and rail workers, who face unprecedented pressure from industry giants.

“A union contract is the most effective tool workers have to make life better for themselves and their families. Yet, the two Republican Board members supporting this decision just made it easier to decertify unions in the rail and aviation sectors and bar employees from being able to vote for union representation for two years after decertification.”

Click here to view the full release from the TTD.

The post TTD Release – New NMB Rule Undermines Aviation and Rail Workers appeared first on IAMAW.

The TCU Carmen division will end the voting process Nov 2nd and will await the TWU Carmen results ending November 9th.

The new agreement will give TCU members a 16.5% wage increase over the course of 6 years, with full back pay. This includes TCU retirees and the beneficiaries of members who have passed away during the moratorium.

“It was a two and a half year struggle, the ratification shows the strength of the membership, they really supported us so that they could get a good contract,” said TCU Vice-President Arthur Maratea. “I want to thank TCU National Representatives Mike Miller and Billy DeCarlo for their support and leadership in negotiating this agreement.”

The post TCU Clerks and Supervisors Overwhelmingly Ratify Agreement with Keolis appeared first on IAMAW.

Prior to ratification, National Vice President Matt Hollis, assisted by Local Chairmen Reggie Carter and Jon Bailey, attended lodge meetings, visited 16 properties, held numerous conference calls, and fielded dozens of email inquiries to ensure TCU members could ask questions and thoroughly understand the terms of the agreement before casting their votes.

The agreement mirrors the general wage increases of the 2018 National Freight Agreement, with an additional 75-cent wage premium and $1,500 lump sum payment. Employee healthcare contributions remain frozen and work rule improvements include a guaranteed 40-hour work week, overtime after 8 hours, the elimination of penalties for using negotiated leave, and the end of forced 16-hour shifts.

The post CSX Intermodal Agreement Ratified appeared first on IAMAW.