INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — Members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen have ratified their first contract with the Arizona Eastern Railway, concluding a process that began in June 2024 when workers voted to join the BLET.
The five-year agreement was ratified by a 22-0 vote, the union announced. The contract includes wages increases and a signing bonus, and establishes work rules including roster seniority, guaranteed rest days, formal training, a process to promote engineers and grievance procedures.
The Arizona Eastern, a Genesee & Wyoming railroad since 2011, operates 195 miles of railroad between Miami and Clifton, Ariz., including trackage rights on Union Pacific. It interchanges with UP in Lordsburg, N.M. [see “Hot Spot: Lordsburg, N.M.,” Trains Magazine, March 2019].
I’m neutral on railroad unions, but if the management choses subpar pay and working conditions, then they deserve a union. The 22-0 Vote in favor doesn’t
speak well of the existing management.
New leaders should be considered by those who sign the checks.