Midland Valley
Lead Service Attendant
The SW Chief left Chicago 6hrs and 20 minutes late and is due into Kansas City 17 hrs late. Amtrak says there is a labor dispute on the Burlington. Anyone know what it is about?
BNSF Labor Problem?
- Thread starter Midland Valley
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It appears to be some sort of labor action/strike by BNSF dispatchers in Saginaw, Texas.
It also affected service on the Talgo's, Sounder, and METRA's evening commute.
So far I've seen nothing in the press, but I'm sure things will appear tomorrow.
Perhaps if BNSF1088 checks in before then, he might also be able to shed some light on this, even though he's a BNSF conductor and not a dispatcher. Of course if he was out on the job, he too may have been stranded by this strike and may not be near a computer.
It also affected service on the Talgo's, Sounder, and METRA's evening commute.
So far I've seen nothing in the press, but I'm sure things will appear tomorrow.
Perhaps if BNSF1088 checks in before then, he might also be able to shed some light on this, even though he's a BNSF conductor and not a dispatcher. Of course if he was out on the job, he too may have been stranded by this strike and may not be near a computer.
Midland Valley
Lead Service Attendant
They either got it worked out or someone else is dispatching. #3 is now listed as 6 hrs late and only 51/2 late into Newton.
Yeah, whatever it was only lasted a hour or two. METRA was forced to cancel like 4 or 5 rush hour trains, before resuming normal service.Midland Valley said:
EmpireBuilderFan
Lead Service Attendant
Looking at the news articles that I've seen, it sounds like members of management who are qualified to dispatch took over to keep some trains running. I just checked the Builder's timekeeping for yesterday, and it looks like they were able to keep it running during the strike as both 7 and 8 were about on time to stations following the walkout.
The full story from the Chicago Tribune.
The full story from the Seattle Pi.
battalion51
Engineer
If those kinds of issues were forced with just the BNSF line shutting down, imagine what would happen if we had a NEC shutdown. Ahem, Bush budget.
Save Our Trains Michigan
Conductor
This issue is due to BNSF not allowing our dispatchers to use there comp time.And just paying them. :angry:
Save Our Trains Michigan
Conductor
By the time it hit the Spring TX dispatching office it was like a smoke break. :angry: And yes i was on the Road at the time this was going on.BNSF_1088 said:
Thanks for the update.BNSF_1088 said:
Did you get stuck in a cab? :unsure:
Save Our Trains Michigan
Conductor
Warn us before strike, Metra tells dispatchers
CHICAGO -- While the accusations flew between BNSF Railway management and its dispatchers union Thursday (March 3), both sides agreed it was unlikely a strike similar to the one that halted trains nationwide and snarled the commutes of thousands of Metra passengers a day earlier would recur, according to this report by Virginia Groark published by the Chicago Tribune.
Still, Metra Executive Director Philip Pagano asked the head of the dispatchers union to consider the service needs of the commuter rail line if the labor dispute continues and "give us ample advance warning so that appropriate advance guidance can be given to our customers."
"While we certainly take no sides in the [American Train Dispatchers Association's] dispute with the carrier, the timing of the disruption could not have been worse for more than 30,000 commuters dependent on Metra's BNSF service, coming as it did at the very start of our evening rush hour," Pagano wrote to F. Leo McCann, the union's president.
Pagano was reacting to the walk-off of more than 100 BNSF dispatchers who left their posts in Ft. Worth around 4 p.m. Wednesday over a dispute about comp time. Because the dispatchers are responsible for guiding trains along the track, their strike halted locomotives across the western half of the country and left some Illinois Metra passengers stranded in rail cars or stuck in Union Station trying to find ways to get home.
Metra's operations on the BNSF line resumed nearly an hour later after the BNSF found managers to fill in for the dispatchers. But the work stoppage continued to trigger delays into the evening as Metra tried to recover from the work stoppage.
In a press release Thursday, the union said the dispatchers walked off the job because BNSF has made "illegal and unilateral" changes in how it grants comp time without the union's consent.
BNSF disputed that claim and fought back by filing a lawsuit in federal court in Texas, according to company spokesman Richard Russack. The railroad believes the union acted illegally by walking off without giving advance notice, he added.
If the company receives financial compensation from the union, it will pass some of that money on to Metra through a credit on the commuter rail line's service contract, Metra spokeswoman Judy Pardonnet said. The commuter rail line pays the company to operate its trains on the line that runs from Union Station to Aurora.
The dispatchers' contract expired Oct. 31 but they have continued to work under the terms of an agreement, officials said.
According to the union, BNSF sought changes to its comp-time policy in a collective bargaining session, but the union rejected the proposal. Regardless, the company implemented the changes on Jan. 1 without the union's consent, according to the press release. The union subsequently had numerous discussions with BNSF in which it told the railroad it was violating the Railway Labor Act, the union officials said.
The dispatchers walked off the job Wednesday after ensuring "all safe measures were taken with regard to train movement," the union press release said. They returned around 6 p.m. after BNSF agreed to revert to the comp-time policy that was in effect before Jan. 1 while a federal court finds a way to resolve the dispute.
(The preceding report by Virginia Groark was published by the Chicago Tribune on Friday, March 4, 2005.)
March 4, 2005
CHICAGO -- While the accusations flew between BNSF Railway management and its dispatchers union Thursday (March 3), both sides agreed it was unlikely a strike similar to the one that halted trains nationwide and snarled the commutes of thousands of Metra passengers a day earlier would recur, according to this report by Virginia Groark published by the Chicago Tribune.
Still, Metra Executive Director Philip Pagano asked the head of the dispatchers union to consider the service needs of the commuter rail line if the labor dispute continues and "give us ample advance warning so that appropriate advance guidance can be given to our customers."
"While we certainly take no sides in the [American Train Dispatchers Association's] dispute with the carrier, the timing of the disruption could not have been worse for more than 30,000 commuters dependent on Metra's BNSF service, coming as it did at the very start of our evening rush hour," Pagano wrote to F. Leo McCann, the union's president.
Pagano was reacting to the walk-off of more than 100 BNSF dispatchers who left their posts in Ft. Worth around 4 p.m. Wednesday over a dispute about comp time. Because the dispatchers are responsible for guiding trains along the track, their strike halted locomotives across the western half of the country and left some Illinois Metra passengers stranded in rail cars or stuck in Union Station trying to find ways to get home.
Metra's operations on the BNSF line resumed nearly an hour later after the BNSF found managers to fill in for the dispatchers. But the work stoppage continued to trigger delays into the evening as Metra tried to recover from the work stoppage.
In a press release Thursday, the union said the dispatchers walked off the job because BNSF has made "illegal and unilateral" changes in how it grants comp time without the union's consent.
BNSF disputed that claim and fought back by filing a lawsuit in federal court in Texas, according to company spokesman Richard Russack. The railroad believes the union acted illegally by walking off without giving advance notice, he added.
If the company receives financial compensation from the union, it will pass some of that money on to Metra through a credit on the commuter rail line's service contract, Metra spokeswoman Judy Pardonnet said. The commuter rail line pays the company to operate its trains on the line that runs from Union Station to Aurora.
The dispatchers' contract expired Oct. 31 but they have continued to work under the terms of an agreement, officials said.
According to the union, BNSF sought changes to its comp-time policy in a collective bargaining session, but the union rejected the proposal. Regardless, the company implemented the changes on Jan. 1 without the union's consent, according to the press release. The union subsequently had numerous discussions with BNSF in which it told the railroad it was violating the Railway Labor Act, the union officials said.
The dispatchers walked off the job Wednesday after ensuring "all safe measures were taken with regard to train movement," the union press release said. They returned around 6 p.m. after BNSF agreed to revert to the comp-time policy that was in effect before Jan. 1 while a federal court finds a way to resolve the dispute.
(The preceding report by Virginia Groark was published by the Chicago Tribune on Friday, March 4, 2005.)
March 4, 2005
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