Members of BLET vote to ratify new national freight rail contract

Voting concluded for members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen for a new national collective bargaining agreement with 10 freight railroads including Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF), Norfolk Southern Railway Company (NS), and Canadian National (CN). Seventy percent of those voting approved the five-year agreement that addresses rates of pay and other issues for more than 12,000 BLET members. It’s important to note that there were no concessions or work rule changes in the new agreement.

Highlights of the contract include:

• General wage increases of 18.8% over the life of the agreement
• A one-time $500 lump sum payment
• Improvements to vacation accrual, allowing BLET members to earn additional weeks of vacation at an accelerated rate
• No increase in out-of-pocket costs for healthcare insurance while offering improved benefits

Over the past two months, since the tentative agreement was reached on October 30 with the employers acting under the umbrella of the National Carriers Conference Committee (NCCC), BLET’s national officers and bargaining team members held an extensive series of meetings from coast-to-coast to discuss the terms of the agreement and to provide members an opportunity to ask questions and make comments. Additional briefings were held virtually.

“This is a democratic union, accepting or rejecting this agreement was solely our members’ decision,” said BLET National President Mark Wallace. “The feedback we received as we traveled the nation showed us that our members knew exactly how tough the national pattern was and voted with a clear understanding of what was at stake. Against that backdrop, this agreement delivers real gains, protects our work rules, and avoids concessions.”

BLET was the last of the 12 rail unions that negotiate with the NCCC to reach a tentative agreement. Members will begin to see the wage increases, lump sum bonuses and added benefits over the next 60 days.

The new contract covers BLET members who work at: Belt Railway Company of Chicago; BNSF Railway Company; Canadian National; Consolidated Rail Corporation; CPKC*; Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad Company; Longview Switching Company; Norfolk Southern Railway Company; Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation d.b.a. Metra*; Portland Terminal Railroad Company (Asterisk (*) indicates Health and Welfare only.)