Local 61 loses second member to COVID-19

SMART Transportation Division Local 61 (Philadelphia, Pa.) has experienced the loss of a second member from the novel coronavirus. McFadden Brother Stephen McFadden, 51, of Philadelphia, and a SEPTA conductor, died April 30 from COVID-19. He had been a member of the union since September 1991. “I saw him at every union meeting we had…


May 6th 2020
Class I carriers report 2020 first quarter earnings

Net Earnings: Decreased 5% to $1.19 billion. Revenue: Decreased 6% to $5.4 billion. Operating Income: Increased 2% to $1.8 billion. Operating Expenses:Decreased 6.7% to $3.6 billion. Operating Ratio: Improved by 4 points to 65.2%. Link to read BNSF’s full earnings report.   Net Earnings: Increased to C$1.01 billion from C$786 million. Earnings Per Share: Diluted earnings…


May 5th 2020
NS idles yard in N.C.; UP an engine shop in Ark.

In a move that carrier officials said was in reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic, Norfolk Southern has idled the hump yard at Linwood Terminal in North Carolina, costing more than 80 people their jobs. NS told Trains Magazine May 1 that the “unforeseeable business circumstances” caused by the coronavirus will result in 85 jobs lost…


May 2nd 2020
Presidential Assistant Horvath retiring

After nearly four decades of service to members and numerous administrations in various roles in both SMART Transportation Division’s Public Relations and President’s Department, Senior Administrative Assistant to the President John Horvath is calling it a career. Horvath Starting May 1, the office won’t echo with his impassioned readings of Article 21B of the SMART…


May 1st 2020
Local 281 S&T talks working at Metra during pandemic

Demetrios Vatistas, secretary and treasurer for SMART Transportation Division Local 281 (Milwaukee, Wis.), discussed working as a Metra conductor during the coronavirus pandemic with a Chicago-area newspaper. Vatistas has been S&T for his local since February 2019 and a TD member since 1997. “I’ve been doing this for 24 years, and I’ve never seen anything…


April 28th 2020