Let’s Not Forget Our Brothers on the W&LE - Fighting for All of Us!
While the fight against the BNSF attempt at engineer only operations was
big time news amongst rail workers, our brothers at the Wheeling and Lake Erie
(W&LE) remain on the front lines of this critical battle, soldiering on in
relative obscurity.
For several years the W&LE has been aggressively pushing
engineer-only trains, and the conductors and engineers said “no thanks”. On
September 13, 2013, the carrier began to run engineer-only with a manager
behind the throttle, no less. In response, the BLET represented members of BOTH
crafts – conductors and engineers - went on strike September 20, 2013. The
strike shut down the regional carrier’s operations in Ohio and Pennsylvania
before the 100+ union members were ordered back to work by a temporary
restraining order.
Since that time, the W&LE remains intransigent on the engineer-only
issue. The workers there remain defiant, but they have now gone seven years
without a raise. Simply put, the W&LE is attempting to economically
bludgeon our brothers and sisters into submission. They are no doubt feeling
the pain; who wouldn’t? This is an outrage!!!
If the W&LE has their way, the major Class 1 railroads will get a
much needed boost in their attempts to run engineer-only. So the stakes for all
of us rail workers is a no-brainer. By logical extension, the general public
has a vested interest in safe railroading operations. As some state
legislatures and corporations are trying to housebreak our unions at best and
bust them at worst, this is one of several battlefronts that the entire working
class has a stake in. They deserve and need the solidarity and support from all
of us -- rails, other workers, and the general public.
At the BLET convention last October, a rank & file
delegate proposed the following resolution from the floor. It carried with
unanimous support (minus one “No” vote). RWU encourages all railroaders of all
unions - BLET or otherwise - to push adoption of similar resolutions in your
respective locals. Then forward them on to RWU. We will send them on to the
Local #292 leadership to let them know they are not alone, and that we all have
their backs.
