Category Archives: Legislative Outlook

TCU Leaders attend Legislative Conference & Lobby Congress

  Last week (May 8-10), TCU/IAM leaders from across the country came to Washington, DC, to attend the 2017 Machinists Legislative Conference. Attendees heard from various congressional speakers including Senators Angus King (I – ME), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Chris Murphy (D-CT), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR). They also heard from Congressmen Anthony Brown and Jamie Raskin

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Edward Wytkind on Medium: As Public Transit Goes, So Goes the Nation

In a release on Medium website, Ed Wytkind, President of the Transportation Trades Department AFL-CIO (TTD) of which TCU is a member stated: While public transit continues to be a lifeline for millions of Americans, too many transit agencies nationwide are failing with upkeep and modernization efforts and thus experiencing system failures. That isn’t just

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TTD’s Ed Wytkind Pens Amtrak Op-Ed in Wall Street Journal

On Sunday, Ed Wytkind, the President of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO, wrote a letter-to-the-editor of the Wall Street Journal in response to their previous editorial that largely bashed Amtrak. The article is behind a paywall so we’ve pasted the text of the letter below. Give Amtrak the Resources It Needs to Be Great We need

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House Railroads Committee Holds Hearing on Safety Regulations

  The House Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee held a hearing today on safety regulations throughout the railroad industry. Testifying on behalf of rail labor was John Tolman of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET). The debate was – at times – fierce between proponents of safety regulations and those that want

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Edward Wytkind: Fast Trains Will Not Just Show Up at the Station

Edward Wytkind, President of the Transportation Trades Department AFL-CIO (TTD) of which TCU is a member, stated: As President Trump has called for new investments in our infrastructure, he has routinely criticized our nation’s passenger rail system, lamenting America’s lack of ‘fast trains’. There is no denying that America should have more frequent and faster

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Republicans Don’t Want Employers to Keep Injury Records

Congressional Republicans are aiming to repeal a regulation issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) which mandates that employers keep records of serious work-related injuries and illnesses for 5 years. This would be a major setback for workers in dangerous industries where proper record-keeping helps identify health and safety-related trends, and thus enables both employers

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Amtrak CEO Wick Moorman Calls for New Era of Infrastructure Investment

In a hearing before the Senate Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security, Amtrak President and CEO Wick Moorman called for a new era of investment in Amtrak’s infrastructure, fleet, and stations, which are critical to the operations and future growth of passenger rail. “The time is now to invest in

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House Democrats Introduce Bill to Strengthen Worker Health and Safety Law

Democrats on the House Education and the Workforce Committee reintroduced the Protecting America’s Workers Act, legislation that strengthens and modernizes the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. The bill would give the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) tools to ensure that employers promptly correct hazardous working conditions, protect workers from retaliation when they

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