BRS threatens to strike NS

[Anonymous]

Signalmen's Union ready to strike NS
(The following story by Lois Caliri appeared on The Roanoke Times website on January 16.)

ROANOKE, Va. -- The Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen is prepared to strike to protest Norfolk Southern's closing of a signal shop in Roanoke.

Today is the last of the five days' notice that NS gave to about 18 local signalmen. The workers will likely keep NS jobs by bumping other signalmen who have less seniority. And they're likely to move to other states served by NS to find other jobs with the company.

Signalmen install, repair and maintain signal systems, which railroads use to direct train movements.

NS left no choice but to prepare for a strike, said Richard Edelman, a Washington, D.C., attorney representing the union. He said NS was unwilling to arbitrate the signal shop closing process.

The railroad said its decision to close the signal shop is not limited by an agreement between the railroad and the union.

Because the two sides could not iron out the differences, Senior U.S. District Judge James Turk will conduct a hearing at 12:30 p.m. today in Harrisonburg to consider both the possibility of a strike and the shop closure issues.

At issue is whether NS violated a contract that, union officials said, prohibited both sides from making any changes regarding the Roanoke signal shop, the last of the railroad's signal shops.

"After spending many months on almost a weekly basis bargaining with NSR over issues ... news [of NS closing the shop] came as a shock," said Floyd Mason, a union vice president. "It is disturbing to spend months of bargaining over these and other issues only to have NS only a few weeks after an agreement is reached to implement drastic changes in work rules with no more than a day's notice."

Added Edelman, "The one day's notice, after months of bargaining on a new agreement, demonstrates the general bad faith in dealing with the union on this issue."

NS, in its court documents, argues that it doesn't need to go through the collective bargaining process to buy new and rebuilt signal devices from outside vendors.

The railroad "has not otherwise bargained away its right to purchase signal devices, whether newly manufactured or rebuilt," documents state.

Edelman said some see the closure as further erosion of Roanoke's railroad legacy. He also said the closure represents NS' rejection of the union agreement and its workers.

NS said it made a business decision to discontinue operations at the Roanoke signal shop. The railroad, in court documents, said "it will exercise its prerogative to purchase rebuilt signal devices, as well as newly manufactured ones, from outside suppliers."

NS documents also said union workers will continue to remove defective signal devices and install new or rebuilt ones in accordance with the labor agreement.


From BLET Page

[rrnut282]

Will this be a system-wide strike or just around Roanoke VA?

[JoeKoh]

it could be very interesting if its system wide from my point of view. I wish you good luck.
stay safe
joe

[Anonymous]

Joe-

I'm not a signalman. Guess we'll see how it turns out.

LC

[wabash1]

I hope it goes system wide I wont run a train past a picket or cross one. all i need is advace notice that they have one up ( a picket) and i will stop outside of town and walk in to get to my truck and leave.

[JoeKoh]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Limitedclear

Joe-

I'm not a signalman. Guess we'll see how it turns out.

LC

LC Wabash
the company I work for has material shipped in and finished product shipped out on Ns[B)]
stay safe
Joe

[Anonymous]

This the Stupidest strike I ever heard oh yes Wabash1 I prorably would not cross it either

[espeefoamer]

I've never been a big fan of the unions,but closing the signal shops on one days notice is BS.[:(!]

[UPTRAIN]

I hope NS goes under.....like Penn Central

[jeffhergert]

If there is a strike, it will last as long as it takes to find a judge to issue an injunction to put everyone back to work.

[wabash1]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Doggy

This the Stupidest strike I ever heard oh yes Wabash1 I prorably would not cross it either

I am not sure what you are saying here. when i look at it you say it is stupid? Unfair labor practice is stupid? And you say you probley not cross a picket line? if the conductors walked out on strike would you be mad at the engineers who crossed your line to run trains with out you? or would you like to have their support? If the strike is legit i will honor it. but you sound like the guy who says i have a family to feed and bills to pay so what if they cut my job and i have senority to bump a man 300 miles away im going to work while they bring someone in off the street to do my job. In other words it dont affect me so let me work. but remeber crap rolls down hill. and what they do there today may effect what you do tomorrow and they will always try something to make a buck for the stock holders and goode.