KCS disputes union claim that cross-border crews are unsafe NEWSWIRE

LAREDO, Texas — The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen say that members of Congress are “shocked” to learn that Mexican crews are running trains into the United States on a nine-mile section of Kansas City Southern, a move the union says is unsafe and threatens jobs. But the railroad disputes the BLET claim that the new practice is unsafe and says it is actually speeding up rail traffic at one of the busiest border crossings between the U.S. and Mexico.

Last month, a delegation of BLET representatives visited 150 Congressional offices in Washington, D.C., to discuss KCS’ use of Mexican-based train crews to bring trains from the international border to the yard a Laredo, nine miles north. Crew changes used to happen at the border, which the railroad says resulted in delays and blocked crossings. BLET members threatened to go on strike earlier this year over what it called a “major dispute under the Railway Labor Act” but a federal judge put a stop to that last month.

BLET National President Dennis R. Pierce has even gone as far as asking President Donald Trump to step in and stop the railroad from using Mexican crews in order to “protect American jobs.”

So far Trump has not responded to the request.

“Members of Congress expressed grave concern that the Federal Railroad Administration would allow the railroad to apply a lower safety standard to Mexican train crews than to U.S. train crews,” Pierce says. “Our members are held to the highest standard while crews coming in from Mexico are essentially given a break in terms of certification, testing, and operating experience.”

Union officials are also worried that the new arrangement could result in job losses. But KCS officials say that is not the case. In a fact sheet provided to Trains News Wire by KCS, it notes that the railroad employs 83 people in Laredo and that number is expected to increase in the coming months. KCS officials also dispute the claim that safety will decline because of the new arrangement, noting that all crews from Mexico will comply with Federal Railroad Administration rules and regulations.

“All International crews used in this process are in compliance with all FRA regulations,” the fact sheet states. “FRA has extensively reviewed training and testing materials, conducted in-person
interviews, reviewed skill rides, validated collection of all background documents and medical exams.”

Mexican crews will also be subject to all travel and work rules of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland Security while operating in the U.S.

Union officials say however that they will continue to object to KCS’ new practice.

“We will not give up in our fight to protect good American jobs, and for the safety of those Americans living in communities where these trains operate,” Pierce says.