Search Results for keywords:"employee protections"

Saratoga Railroad, LLC filed a notice to abandon a 23.71-mile rail line in Carbon County, Wyoming. No local traffic has used the line for two years, and any overhead traffic can be rerouted. Employees affected by this abandonment are entitled to certain protections. The abandonment will take effect on March 2, 2025, unless there is a stay pending reconsideration or other regulatory actions are taken by specified dates.

Union Pacific Railroad Company (UP) has reported that it has gained temporary rights to use a section of track owned by BNSF Railway Company. This particular agreement allows UP to transport ballast trains, which are used for maintenance work, over a 51.7-mile stretch of rail in Oklahoma and Texas. The temporary rights will last until the end of 2021, and UP has stated that these actions are exempt from environmental and historical preservation reviews. If anyone believes this notice contains false information, they can petition to revoke the exemption, but such petitions will not delay the exemption's start date unless filed by a certain deadline.

Portland & Western Railroad, Inc. (PNWR) has filed a notice to abandon a section of railroad track in Tigard, Oregon, covering about 4,111 feet, as there has been no train traffic on it since 2007. The exemption will take effect in January 2025, provided no objections or offers of financial assistance are received. PNWR has ensured that all environmental, historic, and procedural requirements for the abandonment process have been met. If there are any issues with the notice’s accuracy, the exemption could be invalidated, and any affected employees are entitled to protections.

Grainbelt Corporation, a smaller railroad company, has applied for an exemption to extend its use of tracks owned by BNSF Railway Company in Oklahoma and Texas. This extension allows Grainbelt to transport trains for BNSF customers and access a specific facility in Oklahoma until March 2026. The Surface Transportation Board notes that employees affected by this change will receive protections, and any challenges to the exemption need to be filed before May 1, 2025. Additionally, this action is environmentally cleared and doesn't require historic preservation reports.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released an interim final rule to manage the handling of retaliation complaints under the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 (AMLA), as part of anti-retaliation efforts. This rule outlines procedures for filing complaints, the investigation process, and the resolution, including possible appeals and judicial review, in cases of alleged retaliation against whistleblowers. The interim final rule is effective from January 14, 2025, and comments are invited until March 17, 2025, to refine these guidelines. The document ensures whistleblowers are protected when they report actions they reasonably believe to be violations of law, though it excludes employees of federally insured banks and credit unions, which are protected under different statutes.

On January 22, 2025, Jefferson Partners, L.P., which operates as Jefferson Lines, applied to acquire the assets of Karst Stage, Inc., another passenger bus company. The Surface Transportation Board is tentatively approving this move, allowing Jefferson to continue its operations under a new company, Karst Stage, LLC, while maintaining separate identities but sharing management tasks. The approval is contingent on no opposing comments being filed by April 28, 2025. Jefferson argues this transaction will improve service and efficiency without harming competition or employee interests.

BNSF Railway Company requested that the Surface Transportation Board allow a trackage rights exemption to expire at the end of 2021, as previously agreed with Union Pacific Railroad. This arrangement lets BNSF use Union Pacific's rail lines to transport trains carrying ballast to and from a pit in Elsey, California. The Board granted the request, ensuring that the agreement will conclude on December 31, 2021, without negatively impacting shippers, and included protections for any employees affected by the change. This decision will be published in the Federal Register and is effective as of March 25, 2021.