NO!!! You CAN'T have a day off!     The railroad practically invented the term 'on-call'. Many CSX employees do not have schedules, but are forced into working a 'list'. Most lists are on call 6 days a week, 24 hours a day, and often the employee cannot even choose their day off. It is common to be called to work during an assigned day off.     Unscheduled days off are usually not granted for family or religious obligations. There are many CSX employees who have been unable to attend their childrens' birthday parties, their wedding anniversaries, and even funerals because they were not allowed time off.     We've even heard of people who had to call out sick, to attend their own wedding! We're sure that some of these stories that can top even that one...

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Name: RRJ
E-mail: 
Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 30+ years
Posted: 15 March 2012

Personal attack? I don't think so you're just a common dumb arse. If
you don't belong to a union then it shouldn't be a concern. The
retoric these days against unions is spread by those who'll profit.
Nothing more. Greed in this country by a handful of people will bring
us back a hundred years. Progress has stalled. If a person feels so
strongly against unions then why seek a unionized job. No one puts a
gun to anyones head. The railroads started unionizing in 1863. It had
to happen. The Robber Barons like Carnagie became rich off of slave
labor wages. Learn history. It shouldn't repeat itself unfortunately
this country is ripe to take a giant leap backwards. 40 years ago I
sought out union jobs knowing they were the best. I had my fill of
working jobs going nowhere with no future financially. The railroads a
difficult life the rewards are a decent liveable wage.

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Name: JJ E-mail: Employed as: Corporate office, for N/A Posted: 15 March 2012 Unions are the Opiate of the masses. It is 2012, not 1920. Your personal attack was expected. It is the Union Opiate at work turning the brain into mindless sushi. View This Article

Name: RRJ E-mail: Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 30+ years Posted: 13 March 2012 JJ must stand for "Just Joking". Unions are the opiate of the masses. Jezzis, That's a 1920's era propoganda slogan used incorrectly. It was used by the communist Bolsheviks in Russia after the 1917 revolution about religion. "Religion is the opiate of the masses". So JJ, What are you just a dumb arse or a communist? Seeing you stated corporate I'd go with just a plain old dumb arse. View This Article

Name: JJ E-mail: Employed as: Corporate office, for N/A Posted: 12 March 2012 Today's railroad unions are the opiate of the masses of railroad workers. Now regarding injuries - Rule #1: , if you get injured, you get punished. Rule #2: don't get injured. Perhaps the order of rules should be reversed, but I think everyone gets the drift View This Article

Name: Mad Money E-mail: Employed as: Other, non-employee, for N/A Posted: 12 March 2012 To; J Siesmore...Contact your local OSHA office for egregious conduct. Your union officer should have advised that! View This Article

Name: RRJ E-mail: Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 30+ years Posted: 12 March 2012 People write of no life. There never has been a life working on the railroad. Shortly before I hired out in 1977 the HOS law use to be 16 hours not 12 like it is today. I never heard one oldhead ever complain about it. They made decent money some never saw their family for weeks even months. Even in the past couple years since I retired things have changed it allows more time off in between runs with the 2008 FRA Safety Law. No, you don't get time off easily by marking off anymore like it was before gaurented extra boards but that was the price that was paid to get them established. If it was never established extra boards could be loaded down easily because it didn't cost the railroad anything except it did maintain benefits. Most don't even remember extra boards of "feast and famine". No easy answers its adapt or leave. That's the harsh truth. Once a person gets it in their head they're going to make it a carreer they can move on. As a railroader you'll always gripe but not about not having time off but of more important issues because your time is what you're being paid for in all reality. View This Article

Name: j.j. sizemore E-mail: jaab1234@yahoo.com Employed as: Conductor, for 10-20 years Posted: 10 March 2012 I've been on the railroad for ten years all with CSX. In those ten years I've never had a derailment, run through switch, crossing incident, NOTHING! I went through the rehab program last year and have been totally compliant with my program and EAP Supervisor. My wife fell and broke her shoulder in January and had to have surgery. I laid odd sickness in family and got a dr's excuse to give the trainmaster who in turn calls the hospital to check the validation of the excuse. They (CSX) holds a board on me and the trainmaster withholds evidence in the board and immediately pulls me out of service and denies all claims. I feel like i'm being harrassed and discriminated against. Of course I offered for the supervisor to speak to the dr instead of violating my hippa rights. They are determined to terminate me. Ten years no incidents and they wanna fire me. GO FIGURE???? View This Article

Name: E-mail: Employed as: Employed in other capacity, for 1-10 years Posted: 09 March 2012 Question, why do you think so many people are coming forward to say life at CSX is no life at all and comparing it to a Nazi prison camp. Because it is true. Find an employee get to know them ,ask their family , what hardships affected their family life; you will hear stories that will make you believe they brutalize their employees and enjoy it. View This Article

Name: E-mail: Employed as: Other, non-employee, for N/A Posted: 06 March 2012 UNION If union is what you want, make it a good one! FIX WHAT YOU HAVE. Drop the automatic deduction for your dues from your company. WHY-- to send a message! when the UTU and the BLE see this in MASS. They will quickly see the red flags waving. Pay up front for a year if you want, pay late if you want, remember it is always ok as long as you PAY. Now you have a little power, not a lot, but more than just being SHEEP. View This Article

Name: maher E-mail: maher_majdalawi@yahoo.com Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 20-30 years Posted: 04 March 2012 HI please you can proveded me any information for list and quality control for railway. best regards eng. maher majdalawi View This Article

Name: evans E-mail: Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 20-30 years Posted: 03 March 2012 RRJ You're right I'm glad it's a union job. I just expect more. Being raised union under the good ole days. I've seen what as been lost since I was a child.. View This Article

Name: RRJ E-mail: Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 30+ years Posted: 03 March 2012 Rail unions are all closed shop. The BLE was the last hold out that wasn't closed that changed about 5 years ago. The only thing a person can do is not have union dues automatically deducted. That doesn't matter they'll pay eventually. Still times have changed it's not the same. I'd still take belonging to a union over the alternative. View This Article

Name: E-mail: Employed as: Other, non-employee, for N/A Posted: 02 March 2012 Rail Unions (operating) 1. BLF&E 2. BRT 3. ORC 4. SUNA 5. BLE Where did they go and WHY? They merged to survive. Now we have the BLET trying to cover everyone, and the UTUE trying to do the same. Strong members (both sides) fighting in the cab, when in reality they are both the same. The days of a new young Fireman sitting on a locomotive, and making as much or more than the conductor/ Foreman are over. The Fireman on a diesel should have made much less than a head brakeman. This is the kind of stuff the railroads have eaten for so many years. UNION Contracts have taken much more from every employee than they have ever given back. One union on the railroad is the only option. Drop out and save your money, until the engineers/ conductors have a consolidated affront for the carrier at BEST. Check out the MRL, they just run engineer and asst engineer, make good money and have a report with the co that should (Could) be YOURS. View This Article

Name: Evans E-mail: Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 20-30 years Posted: 02 March 2012 RRJ Thats just it what I have has been taken away. We give up a little more every year I'm out here. Whats that Mr. LC?? o I know ( THEY CAN DO THAT) View This Article

Name: RRJ E-mail: Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 30+ years Posted: 02 March 2012 evans CSX is laughing at you? I don't think so. You make a decent living. You have healthcare. Your family is taken care of more than a lot of people in this country. You have a decent retirement. You wouldn't have any of these without the union. Look around this country at what is happening. Good jobs with good wages and benefits are becoming mediocre. Structured retirements are gone this started around 1994 with 401K's which are now also becoming obsolite. What kind of wage or benefits do you think CSX or any class 1 railroad would pay without unions? Just look at shortlines even those that have been unionized don't make what you do. That $1000 a year is well worth it. Don't take for granted what you have it can be taken away. Thank the unions for preserving your standard of living. If you have 20-30 years it's not that far from reaching retirement age. Both you and your spouse will be well taken care of that in itself is worth that $1000 a year. View This Article

Name: RRJ E-mail: Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 30+ years Posted: 02 March 2012 screwedover I'm not justifying the unions. I watched then go down the crapper during the '90's till retirement in 2010. Still I'd much rather be union then not. This constant bickering between the BLEt & UTU is a problems. Do they need to merger? I don't think so. We did fine as separate organizations for years. The UTU losing members by downsizing with the eliminiation of both brakemen slots wasn't a smart idea. I don't think there was a necessity for selling out the last brakemen. The elimination of the flagmen was a no brainer with the end of the caboose. The UTU needs to get back with the other rail unions during contract negotiations this lone wolf crap is hurting everyone. Like the LC an I discussed if they think monday is a weekend next it'll be tuesday ect... View This Article

Name: evans E-mail: Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 20-30 years Posted: 01 March 2012 screwdover You're exactly right. 1000.00 dollars in union dues and what do we get. The company is laughing at us. Union yeah right View This Article

Name: screwedover E-mail: Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 20-30 years Posted: 01 March 2012 RRJ, The blet and utu have made it clear they have no intentions of ever merging(cutting union positions and saving us money in dues) and the blet has shown in the past that they wont accept everything the utu does(even though they lost on the medical crap shoved down our throats)so they could have fought this one out to the bitter end. There is no such things as a 4 day weekend, not even three by the calendar and dictionary. 3 days in a week is a joke and they know it. As far as alot of us are concerned they should still be fighting it... if Im wrong and they still are then Im wrong, but we havent heard any different! Oh...I had to mark off sick because the vacation days and dailies were taken and they wouldnt mark me of PB.Said to short. 2 days later they let someone on my shift take pb and there were the same amount of people marked up. CMC picks and chooses who they want to let off. Been watching them ever since. They play favorites! View This Article

Name: RRJ E-mail: Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 30+ years Posted: 01 March 2012 screwdrover I talked to the BLEt LC yesterday. The monday was added because it was included in the UTU SSA with CSX. Years ago we fought in the BLEt to distinguish that thursdays weren't part of a weekend. I guess the BLEt will have to fight this one also. Check the facts before making a conclusion. You're blaming the wrong union. View This Article

Name: screwedover E-mail: Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 20-30 years Posted: 28 February 2012 BLET, Thanks again for allowing the company to find a way to make it hard as hell to earn any stock bonuses! You agreed with csx that the weekend would be considered as Friday, Saturday,Sunday and MONDAY! Try looking in the webster dictionary for the definition of a weekend. ITS NOT 4 DAYS A WEEK! This is the only company I have ever seen that thinks the week only consist of 3 days! I had to mark off 1 STINKING TIME on a monday and because of that I lost all my stock bonus I could have earned! And dont say thats all my fault cause I knew if I took one stinking day off(ON A REAL WEEKDAY) I would loose it all! You know this aggreement you made with them would stick it to over 90 percent of us because we have a life outside this stinking railroad and we cant possible be expected to do everything in our lives with just 3 days in a week! Hope your happy! View This Article