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BMWED National Bargaining Update
Bargaining Update: National Carriers Conference Committee Gives Bargaining Presentation
The National Carriers Conference Committee (NCCC) gave a presentation about its bargaining proposals to the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division (BMWED) and SMART-Mechanical Department (SMART-MD) Coalition on April 15, 2020.
While approximately 30,000 of Maintenance of Way and SMART-MD railroad workers are risking their lives during the global COVID-19 pandemic to keep American rail infrastructure maintained and safe for the continued transportation of necessary supplies nationwide, the railroads are working to cut your pay, slash your healthcare benefits, assign more of your work to outside contractors and diminish your quality of life.
Railroad management is pretending that rail workers are paid in excess of 40 percent more than the rest of the U.S. workforce. This is based on false comparisons. The railroads are also purporting that one-third of railroad workers’ healthcare claims are unnecessary, excessive, fraudulent and inefficient. We find fault in that statement, as well. And a proposal to reduce access to health care is especially foolish in a time of an unprecedented global pandemic. The railroads are also alleging that several of the rules of each of your collective bargaining agreements, such as your seniority and seniority districts, the 40-hour work week, limitations on contracting out, and craft line boundaries, need to be changed so the railroads can make even more profits off of your labor.
“The railroads’ proposals are disturbing, because they are a direct attack on – what should be – their most valued asset: railroad workers. But their proposals are not surprising,” BMWED President Freddie N. Simpson said. “The BMWED/SMART-MD Coalition will carefully examine each of the NCCC’s proposals and prepare a response. Being a railroader is a full-contact sport. I would encourage the railroads to put their helmet on and buckle their chin strap for this round.”
Further information regarding national negotiations will be provided as information develops. To stay involved and up to date with information, please follow updates at bmwe.org, sign up for our email News Alerts at the top of our website, or find updates on Facebook at facebook.com/BMWEDIBT.
National Carriers Conference Committee (NCCC) presentations linked below:
NCCC 2020 Bargaining Presentation
NCCC Bargaining Presentations (Work Rule Proposals)
To read the original article on the BMWED website, click here.