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| NEXT LOCAL 415 UNION MEETING: Monday, April 12, 1:30 pm, at: Royer Park Veterans Building, Roseville, Ca | (click for map) |
Brotherhood
of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, Roseville, CA.
|
BLE LINKS, RR RETIREMENT MERGER NEWS, 60/30 GOV. LINKS, STOCKS/401K Hub Phone #'s Big Al's Claim Book Canyon Cheats Valley Cheats UPWL r-100 form 415's, Paid Claims Sheet Rate Tables Jan. 2003 TPAChecker CONTACTS Legeslative
Rep (415)
AFLCIO Website |
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, Division 415 Roseville, CA Local Alert Attention RE77 Pool and Xtra Engineers: Spaces will no longer be dropped on the Mountain Pool, only! The Calling order is: 1. Pool turn, 2. Xe15 board, 3. Xe10 board, 4. Then, back to the Re77 pool for the first out, rested engineer. Example for #4: If you are 11 times out on the Re77 pool with 10 blank spaces in front of you, and no one rested on either extra board, then you are first out rested, and subject to call. Spaces do not protect you from active status! (This means you cannot hide behind spaces!!!) NCC May 2002 Newsletter * Pool Mileage: This continues to
be a hot issue. Please be sure to
* If you are injured on duty, do not fill
out UPRR Form 53032 before you
* Food Locker Proposed for Portola - The
Company has proposed a Food
* Extra Board Engineers called to protect
jobs in Sacramento - Effective
Example: Called for a 800am job in
Sacramento:
* Region/System Board for Fresno bulletined
for 2 Engineers from Zone 1
* Safety Vests are 'in' again. This
time lime green is the color of
* Division 415 Picnic is scheduled for June
1st at Johnson Springview Park
* Vacation Weeks are available for May,
June, and July - Contact Craig if
* Contract Negotiations: Nothing new
to report. The UTU has settled
* Personal Leave Issue - Nothing new to report. * Got an issue for the California State Legislative
Board? Contact Paul
INDUSTRY NEWS:
Union Pacific today reported
record net income for the first quarter. UP
NTSB renews call for adequate rest Words of wisdom from retired SP Western
Division Conductor
WASHINGTON, D.C. May 13, 2002-- National
Transportation Safety Board Chairman, Marion Blakey warned that operator
fatigue remains a primary cause of serious transportation accidents. "Throughout
all modes of
Development of effective fatigue countermeasures
has been a perennial
A 1999 NTSB study of government efforts
to address the fatigue issue found
Remote Control Update Six remote control incidents documented since mid-March (From the BLE Members List)
One accident has occurred on CSX property,
four on Union Pacific
Read the complete article at www.ble.org. * Tired of only getting bits and pieces
of what happened at the last union
Got an item for the BLE Local 415 Engineer's
newsletter? Contact the
ATTENTION ENGINEERS
Start entering all miles in the
Examples are:
All time must be converted
to miles and then
Past Newsletters and Alerts, scroll down below. lHome l Officers l News l Legends l Photos l Zoomer I Safety Watch l Help/Info l
CALIFORNIA STATE LEGISLATIVE BOARD 
Copyright © 2000-2004 B.L.E. T. Division 415 |
|
* Pool Mileage: The Company
contends that the pools are not meeting
their miles under the mileage agreement.
In order to temporary satisfy the
carrier, the pools have been regulated to 4200
miles. However, it is this
Local's contention that the carrier's numbers
show only line mileage, (ie.
Point A to Point B) and do not take in account
any miles earned by
arbitraries, such as HAHT, Overtime, Excess Miles,
Runarounds, Used in the
25 Mile Zone, Travel Allowance, etc.
Therefore, all members working Pool jobs
are asked to register their
miles. This is done when tying-up by entering
your total earned miles in
the REG MILES box in the extreme upper right-hand
side of the same screen
that you enter your Departure/Arrival times.
Mileage Basics:
Basic day /HAHT/Deadheads = 16.25 MPH
Overtime Rate = 23.375 MPH
Used in the 25 mile Zone/Runaround/Call and Release
= 65 miles
Mountain Excess Miles = 20; Dunsmuir
Excess Miles = 39
* Contract Negotiations: The last
meeting with the Carriers was on April
8th and 9th. Among other issues, health
care is a major stumbling block.
* Personal Leave Issue - is back on track
for arbitration after being
delayed by some political types.
* Division 415 Picnic is Scheduled for June
1st - A DVD player will be
raffled - More details to follow . . .
* UP Shares - Employees are urged up open
E-Trade accounts now so they can
access their shares when the time comes to sell.
Details on the UP Website.
* Vacation Weeks are available for April
and May - Contact Craig if
interested...
* Got an issue for the California State
Legislative Board? Contact Paul
Turney at (925) 672-2882 or email him at
greenblock@aol.com.
* Remote Control Update: On
Friday, March 25th, the BLE filed suit in
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
against Secretary of
Transportation Norman Y. Mineta and Federal Railroad
Administrator Allan
Rutter over the issue of remote control.
The suit alleges that the two violated the
law by not properly
administering the Federal Railroad Safety Act
of 1970, and the Locomotive
Inspection Act.
The language of the law suit is available online at: www.ble.com.
* Want to know what's in the newsletter
before it comes out? Attend the
next meeting on May 13th, 2002 at 130pm at Royer
Park (in the Veteran's
building) in Roseville and find out!
See you there!
Got an item for the newsletter? Contact
the editor via Email at
spengr@foothill.net
* Deadheaded to the far terminal of a pool only to earn HAHT: The Company agrees that there is a problem. Let Craig know if this happens to you.
* Contract Negotiations: Next meeting with the Carriers is on April 8th and 9th. No news on any progress at this time . . .
* The Extra Board Rest Day issue will be artbitrated.
* 25 Miles Zone: If you are used in the '25 mile zone' to receive your train and circumstances require you to beyond 25 miles, inform the Dispatcher that you were used in Short Turnaround Service and will need to be relieved upon arrival at your originating terminal. Run all extraboards and applicable pools for Craig to process a run-around claim.
* Got an issue for the California State Legislative Board? Contact Paul Turney at (925) 672-2882 or email him at greenblock@aol.com.
* Deadheaded Separate & Apart and used immediately upon arrival at the far terminal: If you are called to deadhead separate and apart to the opposite end of a pool and upon arrival you are instructed to turn immediately, do not tie up. You are entitled to the full mileage, overtime, and excess miles (pre '85). Contact CMS to change your call to continous time on duty.
* High Speed HAHT - is calculated on the actual time switch to switch on the deadhead, not TOTAL trip time.
* Claiming Units handled during a trip: Members are reminded to claim the largest number of units handled in Multiple at any one time, NOT all of the units handled during a particular tour of duty.
* Late Meal Claims for Yard Engineers: If you are unable to complete your 20 minute meal period within 6 hours of your on duty time, you are entitled to 20 minutes overtime. Reference Article11: Q&A 94(e).
* Vacation Weeks are available for March and April - Contact Craig if interested in Spring vacation.
* Remote Control Update: The Company has introduced rules governing Remote Control Operation (System General Order No 29, dated February 1st, 2002). The FRA has also produced basic guidelines that apply Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 240 to the operation of remote control locomotives.
* Remote Control in the Headlines: Judge for yourself how Remote Control will effect your job, your future, and your safety:
Remote control played no role in accident, manufacturer
says
A March 7 accident involving a remote-control
locomotive at an Indian
power plant was not caused by an older model
remote-control system,
according to the company that now owns the manufacturer
of the unit
involved.
Six hoppers of coal, pushed by a locomotive operated
with a Vectran
VR10 remote control system, ran through the rotary
dumper and
collided with a manned locomotive at the NIPSCO
generating station in Michigan City, Ind. The engineer of the second
locomotive jumped prior to the collision, and no one was injured in the
wreck.
More info at Trains.com March 18, 2002.CSX and KCS lead U.S. industry in remote-control rollout
Engineer positions on the remote control jobs
will be eliminated on
both CSX and KCS. But the engineers themselves
will still have jobs,
as both railroads are hungry for engineers.
The changes to railroad retirement, which allow
60-year-olds with 30
years of service to retire with full benefits,
are expected to accelerate
normal attrition rates among engineers, both
railroads said. Remote
control will help cushion the blow to both railroads
and the engineers.
More info at Trains.com March 18, 2002
* Want to know what's in the newsletter before it comes out? Attend the next meeting on April 8th, 2002 at 130pm at Royer Park (in the Veteran's building) in Roseville and find out! See you there!
Got an item for the newsletter? Contact the editor via Email at spengr@foothill.net
* Division 415 will NOT increase members monthly
union dues by $25.00 as has been mandated by the B.L.E. International.
The assessment will be borne by the Local.
This applies to all members!
* Updated Air Conditioner Policy - Effective May 1st, if you have a working A/C that is not on the point of your train and it could be, it should be (DPU trains are an exception). See Superintendents notice for more details.
* Tired of dealing with rude crew dispatchers?
Get the name of who you are dealing with when doing business with CMS -
Crew dispatchers that are
continuously rude and obnoxious need to be reported to Craig for further
handling.
* Remote Control Update: U.S. railroads
move closer to beginning locomotive remote control pilot projects
- Federal judge rules that the dispute between the BLE and the railroads
was a minor one, meaning the BLE could not legally strike over remote control.
Doesn't sound good for the
home team . . . More info at: www.ble.org.
* The General Committee Office will be moving from Auburn to Redlands, California.
* Happy Retirement to Engineers Jim Pahlman, Gary Clark, Richard Cirincioni, Rod Turner, Jim Tibbitts and Jim Mireles..
* Want to know what's in the newsletter before it comes out? Attend the next meeting on February 11th, 2002 at 130pm at Royer Park (in the Veteran's building) in Roseville and find out! See you there!
Got an item for the newsletter? Contact
the editor via Email at spengr@foothill.net
* BLE votes down UTU Merger!! By a vote
of 17,251 - 7,425, members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers
have
said NO to a proposed merger with the United
Transportation Union. More info at www.ble.org.
* Retirement Bill Passes - The U.S. House
of Representatives overwhelming passed H.R. 10, the Railroad Retirement
and
Survivors' Improvement Act of 2001. The Clerk
of the House now prepares the bill for transmission to the White House.
We
are just one step away from the bill's enactment.
Once the President has signed the legislation, the Railroad Retirement
Board
will be publishing information on how this legislation
affects railroad employees, retirees, and
widows.
In the meantime, if you have any technical questions
about your retirement benefits, contact the Railroad Retirement Board
directly at www.rrb.gov or call the automated
hotline at (800) 808-0772.
* Updated TPA + COLA Numbers: Craig has the most current TPA numbers from the Protection Department.
* $20.00 In Lieu of Lodging - The Company must
receive your election by Friday, January 4th. Call the
bid recorder at
1-888-634-0425 or 8-997-2148. See
Roseville Superintendent Bulletin No. 113 for more info.
* 2002 Personal Leave Days in Lieu of Holiday
- Contact the Bid Recorder at
1-888-634-0425 or 8-997-2148 no later than 11:59pm
on December 31st to make your election. See Superintendent's
Bulletin for additional information.
* Personal Leave Issue to be arbitrated in Spring 2002.
* Railroad Retirement Cutoff Numbers for 2002: Tier I $84K - Tier II $63K
* Do you have extra Christmas Cards?
Make good use of them - Send them to the Troops at the Railroad Battalion!
Address the cards to:
Commander Sub. 757 Trans. Batt.
Attn. SSG Willis
2372 So. Logan Ave.
Milwaukee, WI 53207-1799
* This Month's Hot Issue: Witch Hunt - Roseville
Service Unit officers are currently under instructions to make sure that
the
basic tasks of being an Locomotive Engineer are
preformed on a regular basis. Tasks such as, but not limited to,
signing daily
inspection cards, securing your locomotives/train
when you leave your train and the outbound crew is not there to immediately
relieve you, dropping the Generator Field switch,
isolating and tying down your units; and releasing the independent
to verify
that the handbrakes will hold the locomotives/train.
All trains/trips are subject to being downloaded for further review.
Be
careful out there . . .
* Think you have a bad job?? When
you have an "I hate my job" day try this:
On your way home stop at a pharmacy and go to
the thermometer section. You will need to purchase a rectal thermometer
made by Q-tip. Be sure to get
this brand. When you get home, lock your
doors, draw the blinds and
disconnect the phone so you won't be disturbed
during your therapy. Change
into comfortable clothing, such as sweats and
lie down on your bed. Open
the package and remove your thermometer.
Carefully place it on the bedside
table so it won't get chipped or broken.
Remove the written material that
comes with the thermometer and read it. You will
notice in small print the
following statement:
"Every rectal thermometer made by Q-tip is personally
tested."
Now, close your eyes and repeat out loud 5 times,
"I am so glad I do not work in quality control at the Q-tip company."
* Want to know what's in the newsletter before
it comes out? Attend the next meeting on January 14th, 2002
at 130pm at
Royer Park (in the Veteran's building) in Roseville
and find out! See you there!
Got an item for the newsletter? Contact
the editor via Email at spengr@foothill.net.
Sent: Saturday, November
17, 2001 9:39 PM
Subject: Railroad Retirement 2002
Brothers and Sisters,
Railroad Retirement tax rates and maximum compensation bases for the year
2002 are:
Employee Tier I - 6.20% Earning base $84,000
Employee Tier II - 4.90% Earning base $63,000
Medicare - 1.45%
415 Local Alert
ALERT:
Carrier Respirator Questionnaire
It is OK to fill out and send either to the contractor
or the carrier MOP. You are not required to
fill in section "G" which is voluntary information
and not mandatory. I suggest that you not fill
out section "G".
NCC.
Heads up from the P.U.C.
Radio procedure on all channels (including yard
channels) are being regularly monitored. Employees could
be personally fined by law. Heads up!
NCC
This Month’s Hot Issue:
Check your track bulletins and warrants for
CORRECT ADDRESSES and TERRITORYS to be operated
on!!! Check
carefully that the route to be taken is listed
in the address.
Consequences are Level 4 . . .
60/30 Retirement Bill Status: As of
September 11th, S.697 has 71 sponsors in
the Senate and is currently hung-up in the Senate
Finance Committee. No word on
the when the next phase will take place.
Stay tuned . . .
Making Trips Over Unfamiliar Territory Without
a Pilot - DON’T. Refer the officer
making the request to UPRR System Special Instructions
Page 19 Item 7A, Section 1,
Qualifications of Engineers, and tell him to
get over it.
Single Vacation Days - Remember that Single
Vacation Days start when you take them,
not at midnight, and end 24 hours later.
For example, a single vacation day taken at 930pm
will end at 930pm the following day.
The Vice-Local Chairman is proud to report
that to date, we have successfully
processed run-around claims for 180 BLE415 members
totaling $14,098.73.
If you identify a possible claim for your fellow
brother, please print affected boards and
note any additional information that maybe of
help in processing the claim and put the claim in
the BLE box. I cannot have too much information
and cannot do this without your help. You
owe it to yourself and your fellow brother.
Remember: The additional claims you collect today
may be
your trip rate tomorrow. (see UTU proposed contract)
Claim everything you
are entitled to!!! The claims indicated as processed
are for run-arounds only and
there are many additional claims that were paid
at the Local Committee and General
Committee Level. It pays to know your agreement!
NCC
Special thanks and appreciation to the following
BLE local 415 engineers:
JA Givan, GA Ferguson, MR Capo, LP Mireles, DA
Martin, DC Falltrick, and MD Metz.
To those whom I may have forgotten, I apologize.
/Jeff Gibbs
Want to know what’s happening in your Union??
Attend the next meeting on October 8th at 130pm
at Royer Park (in the Veteran’s building)
in Roseville and find out! See you
there!
Got an item for the newsletter? Contact
the editor via Email at spengr@foothill.net
<mailto:spengr@foothill.net>.
Do you know the way to San Jose?
Stop Tests - Watch out and be carefull out there!!
Cost of Living Allowance was effective July 1st, 2001.
60/30 Retirement Bill Status:
There are currently 367 sponsors in the House
of Representative, and 66 sponsors in the Senate.
Travel Allowance revisited:
Omaha seems to have a problem with paying the
2 hour travel allowance properly. It is
recommended that you word your claim to include
what time your paperwork was completed.
(Paperwork can be anything that has to do with
your train at the arriving station)
EXAMPLE:
Claim 2 hour travel allowance: MRVRO arrived
at RV185 at 1800, completed required paperwork and
departed RV185 at 1930; arrived PX637 at
2020.
Local 415 now has a presence on the Web:
Check out our new web page at HYPERLINK
"http://www.ble415.org" http://www.ble415.org .
Posted on the site is a copy of Big Al’s claim
book, most commonly needed phone numbers for the
Roseville Hub, information on 60/30, links to
Tim Smiths CSLB page and more.
People Happenings:
Happy Retirement: Engineer Ron Zumalt.
See pictures on this site.
Get well soon: Engineer Tom Tillett,
recovering from surgery.
Want to know what’s happening in your Union??
Attend the next meeting on Sept 10th at
130pm at Royer Park (in the Veteran’s building) in Roseville
and find out! See you there!
Got an item for the newsletter? Contact the newsletter editor via Email at spengr@foothill.net
