|
Railroad Workers United
Railroad Workers United (RWU) - which grew out of the group Railroad Operating Crafts United (ROCU) is a cross-union rail workers’ reform group that was started as a result of a push by workers from the United Transportation Union and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen to merge unions. They are now a cross-craft organization that supports all non-management railroad workers. RWU has a steering committee - currently (2024) of 11 Members and 5 Alternates, all of whom are working railroaders from various crafts and rail unions. Members are elected at their bi-annual convention, usually held in the spring of even numbered years, generally in Chicago, a major railroad center. The organization's membership is open to any railroad worker, working in the United States of America, Mexico, or Canada and who are not supervisory personnel or managers. The official RWU slogan is "Solidarity - Unity - Democracy." The organization engages in a variety of Campaigns that are p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United Transportation Union
The United Transportation Union (UTU) was a broad-based, transportation labor union that represented about 70,000 active and retired railroad, bus, mass transit, and airline workers in the United States. The UTU was headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. On August 11, 2014, it merged with the Sheet Metal Workers' International Association (SMWIA) to form the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, known by the acronym SMART. Membership The UTU was the largest railroad operating union in North America, with more than 500 locals. The UTU represented employees on every Class I railroad in the United States, as well as employees on many American regional and shortline railroads. It also represented bus and mass transit employees on approximately 45 bus and transit systems and had grown to include airline pilots, flight attendants, dispatchers and other airport personnel. The UTU was very interested in the airline sector and hoped to expand its rep ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brotherhood Of Locomotive Engineers And Trainmen
The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) is a labor union founded in Marshall, Michigan, on 8 May 1863 as the Brotherhood of the Footboard. It was the first permanent trade organization for railroad workers in the US. A year later it was renamed the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers (B of LE). The B of LE took its present name in 2004 when it became a division of the Rail Conference of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT). In the 19th century, the brotherhood generally took a conciliatory approach in dealing with railroad management, preferring to negotiate reasonable demands than to go on strike. The brotherhood was seen as elitist by other railway unions, and sometimes came into conflict during strikes. However, it was respected by its members. By 1925 it had accumulated large investments to support member benefits and pensions. That year it was found that some of these investments were troubled. The executives launched into risky projects in an a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
One-man Operation
One-person operation (OPO), also known as driver-only operation (DOO), one-man operation (OMO), single person train operation (SPTO), or one-person train operation (OPTO), similarly to Driver Controlled Operation, is operation of a train, bus, or tram by the driver alone, without a conductor. On one-person operated passenger trains, the engineer must be able to see the whole train to make sure that all the doors are safe for departure. On curved platforms a CCTV system, mirror or station dispatch staff are required. Although extra infrastructure such as cameras and mirrors might require additional investment, one-person operation is usually faster and cheaper to implement than automatic train operation, requiring a smaller investment in, for example, platform intruder detection systems and track protection (fencing, bridge-caging, CCTV etc.). In some cases, one-person operation can be seen as an intermediate step towards automatic train operation. While European freight t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2022 United States Railroad Labor Dispute
The 2022 United States railroad labor dispute was a labor dispute between freight railroads and workers in the United States. Rail companies and unions had tentatively agreed to a deal in September 2022, but it was rejected by a majority of the unions' rank-and-file members. Congress and President Joe Biden intervened to pass the tentative agreement into law on December 2, averting a strike. The new contract contains an immediate 14% wage increase and 24% salary increase over five years, plus one day of paid leave per year. The companies and unions had been negotiating since 2019 and began mediation in June 2021. Biden convened a Presidential Emergency Board in July 2022, which issued recommendations and a 30-day cooling off period that expired on September 16, 2022. There were significant concerns that a freight rail strike would further exacerbate ongoing supply chain issues. Background The rise of precision scheduled railroading has resulted in resource and staffing cuts; ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nationalization
Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately-owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to private assets or to assets owned by lower levels of government (such as municipalities) being transferred to the state. Nationalization contrasts with privatization and with demutualization. When previously nationalized assets are privatized and subsequently returned to public ownership at a later stage, they are said to have undergone renationalization. Industries often subject to nationalization include the commanding heights of the economy – telecommunications, electric power, fossil fuels, railways, airlines, iron ore, media, postal services, banks, and water – though, in many jurisdictions, many such entities have no history of private ownership. Nationalization may occur with or without financial compensation to the former ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coronavirus Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified in an outbreak in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019. Attempts to contain it there failed, allowing the virus to spread to other areas of Asia and later worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern on 30 January 2020, and a pandemic on 11 March 2020. As of , the pandemic had caused more than cases and confirmed deaths, making it one of the deadliest in history. COVID-19 symptoms range from undetectable to deadly, but most commonly include fever, dry cough, and fatigue. Severe illness is more likely in elderly patients and those with certain underlying medical conditions. COVID-19 transmits when people breathe in air contaminated by droplets and sm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shareholder
A shareholder (in the United States often referred to as stockholder) of a corporation is an individual or legal entity (such as another corporation, a body politic, a trust or partnership) that is registered by the corporation as the legal owner of shares of the share capital of a public or private corporation. Shareholders may be referred to as members of a corporation. A person or legal entity becomes a shareholder in a corporation when their name and other details are entered in the corporation's register of shareholders or members, and unless required by law the corporation is not required or permitted to enquire as to the beneficial ownership of the shares. A corporation generally cannot own shares of itself. The influence of a shareholder on the business is determined by the shareholding percentage owned. Shareholders of a corporation are legally separate from the corporation itself. They are generally not liable for the corporation's debts, and the shareholders' l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stock Buybacks
Share repurchase, also known as share buyback or stock buyback, is the re-acquisition by a company of its own shares. It represents an alternate and more flexible way (relative to dividends) of returning money to shareholders. When used in coordination with increased corporate leverage, buybacks can increase share prices. In most countries, a corporation can repurchase its own stock by distributing cash to existing shareholders in exchange for a fraction of the company's outstanding equity; that is, cash is exchanged for a reduction in the number of shares outstanding. The company either retires the repurchased shares or keeps them as treasury stock, available for re- issuance. Under U.S. corporate law, there are six primary methods of stock repurchase: open market, private negotiations, repurchase " put" rights, two variants of self-tender repurchase (a fixed price tender offer and a Dutch auction), and accelerate repurchases. More than 95% of the buyback programs worldwi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anti-labor
A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits (such as holiday, health care, and retirement), improving working conditions, improving safety standards, establishing complaint procedures, developing rules governing status of employees (rules governing promotions, just-cause conditions for termination) and protecting the integrity of their trade through the increased bargaining power wielded by solidarity among workers. Trade unions typically fund their head office and legal team functions through regularly imposed fees called ''union dues''. The delegate staff of the trade union representation in the workforce are usually made up of workplace volunteers who are often appointed by members in democratic elections. The trade union, through an elected leadership and bargaining committee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2021–2022 Global Supply Chain Crisis
In 2021, as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, global supply chains and shipments slowed, causing worldwide shortages and affecting consumer patterns. Causes of the economic slowdown included workers becoming sick with COVID-19 as well as mandates and restrictions affecting the availability of staff. In cargo shipping, goods remained at port due to staffing shortages. The related global chip shortage has contributed to the supply chain crisis, specifically in the automobile and electronics sectors. During the Christmas and holiday season of 2021, an increase in spending in North America, combined with the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, further exacerbated already tight supplies. Long tail effects of the supply chain crises are contributing to ongoing food security issues related to the pandemic, including the 2022 food crises. Causes In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic initially slowed the global supply chain as manufacturers suspended work until saf ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Price Gouging
Price gouging is a pejorative term used to describe the situation when a seller increases the prices of goods, services, or commodities to a level much higher than is considered reasonable or fair. Usually, this event occurs after a demand or supply shock. This term is commonly used to describe price increases of basic necessities after natural disasters. In legal usage, price gouging is the name of a crime that applies in some jurisdictions of the United States during civil emergencies. In less precise usage, the term can also be used to refer to profits obtained by practices inconsistent with a competitive free market, or to windfall profits. Price gouging is considered by some to be exploitative and unethical. The term is similar to profiteering but can be distinguished by being short-term and localized and by being restricted to essentials such as food, clothing, shelter, medicine, and equipment needed to preserve life and property. In jurisdictions where there is no ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Precision Scheduled Railroading
Precision railroading or precision scheduled railroading (PSR) is a concept in freight railroad operations pioneered by E. Hunter Harrison in 1993, and adopted by nearly every North American Class I railroad. It shifts the focus from older practices, such as unit trains, hub and spoke operations and individual car switching at hump yards, to emphasize point-to-point freight car movements on simplified routing networks. Under PSR, freight trains operate on fixed schedules, much like passenger trains, instead of being dispatched whenever a sufficient number of loaded cars are available. In the past, intermodal trains and general merchandise trains operated separately; under PSR they are combined as needed, typically with distributed power. Inventories of freight cars and locomotives are reduced and fewer workers are employed for a given level of traffic. The result is often substantial improvement in railroad operating ratios, and other financial and operating metrics; at the cost o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
