District Lodge 19 Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Offers:
Help with Medical Bills -
(excerpts from USA.gov)
If you can't afford medical care or prescription drugs, these state and federal programs may be able to help:
• HealthCare.gov helps you find insurance options, compare care, learn about prevention, and understand the Affordable Care Act.
• State human/social service agencies offer direct aid and referrals to other organizations.
• State Medicaid offices offer help to low-income people.
• Local Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) offices offer programs designed to help veterans.
• Eldercare Locator information specialists put you in contact with resources and programs designed to help seniors.
• State Children's Health Insurance Programs (SCHIP) help insure children of working families who cannot afford health insurance or don't get it through their work.
• Benefits.gov allows you to complete a confidential questionnaire and receive a list of programs that may help.
Help with Prescription Drug Costs -
If you're looking for help paying for your prescriptions, there are a number of local and federal agencies and programs you can contact:
• State human service agencies provide direct assistance to people in distress and referrals to other local organizations that may be able to help.
• Local health centers serve people with limited access to health care. You pay based on your income and family size.
• Medicare's Prescription Drug Program can provide extra help with the cost of prescription drugs if you qualify and are a Medicare beneficiary.
• Use Healthfinder.gov’s list of prescription assistance resources to find more programs that could help you pay for your medicines.
What The Railroad Retirement Board Is and How It Works -
Railroad Retirement Board The Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) is an independent agency in the executive branch of the Federal Government. The RRB's primary function is to administer comprehensive retirement-survivor and unemployment-sickness benefit programs for the nation's railroad workers and their families, under the Railroad Retirement and Railroad Unemployment Insurance Acts. As part of the retirement program, the RRB also has administrative responsibilities under the Social Security Act for certain benefit payments and railroad workers' Medicare coverage.
Provisions Full age annuities are payable at age 60 to workers with 30 years of service. For those with less than 30 years of service, reduced annuities are payable at age 62 and unreduced annuities are payable at full retirement age, which is gradually rising from 65 to 67, depending on the year of birth. Disability annuities can be paid on the basis of total or occupational disability. Annuities are also payable to spouses and divorced spouses of retired workers, widow(er)s, surviving divorced spouses, remarried widow(er)s, children, and parents of deceased railroad workers. Qualified railroad retirement beneficiaries receive Medicare coverage just like social security beneficiaries.
As noted, the RRB pays retirement annuities to employees, as well as their spouses and/or divorced spouses, if the employee had at least 10 years of railroad service, or 5 years if performed after 1995. However, for survivor benefits, there is an additional requirement that the employee's last regular employment before retirement or death was in the railroad industry. If a railroad employee or his or her survivors do not qualify for railroad retirement benefits, the RRB transfers the employee's railroad retirement credits to the Social Security Administration, which treats them as social security credits.
Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act Under the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act, unemployment insurance benefits are paid to railroad workers who are unemployed but ready, willing, and able to work, and sickness benefits to railroad workers unable to work because of illness or injury. The RRB also operates a placement service to help unemployed railroaders secure employment.
Benefit Year A new unemployment-sickness benefit year begins every July 1, with eligibility generally based on railroad service and earnings in the preceding calendar year. Up to 26 weeks of normal unemployment or sickness benefits are payable to an individual in a benefit year. Additional extended benefits are payable to persons with 10 or more years of service.
Railroad Medicare The Medicare program covers railroad workers just like workers covered under social security. The Medicare program provides health insurance to persons ages 65 and older, as well as persons under age 65 who have been entitled to monthly benefits based on total disability for at least 24 months or who suffer from chronic kidney disease requiring hemodialysis or transplant. In addition to basic hospital insurance (Part A) financed by payroll taxes, there is an elective supplementary medical insurance (Part B) that covers many other medical services, such as doctor visits, durable medical equipment, and outpatient services that hospital insurance does not cover.
Eligible railroad retirement annuitants and social security beneficiaries whose benefits are payable by the RRB are automatically enrolled under both plans, but the annuitant or beneficiary can decline Medicare Part B. Eligible non-retired persons must apply in order to obtain Medicare coverage. The RRB automatically enrolled some 27,100 beneficiaries for Medicare during fiscal year 2016. As of the end of that fiscal year, about 465,300 people were enrolled in the Part A plan, and over 445,900 (96 percent) of them were also enrolled in Part B. Palmetto GBA, a subsidiary of Blue Cross and Blue Shield, processes medical insurance (Part B) claims for railroad retirement Medicare beneficiaries.
For more information from the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) call or go online: (877) 772-5772 or www.rrb.gov
For assistance through the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Contact: District Lodge 19 EAP Director Josh Hartford at: (207) 474-3934 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
BNSF is currently in the process of closing the Murray Shop in Kansas City and reducing forces at Glendive, MT. The reductions consist of 29 Machinists at Murray and 25 at Glendive. Currently BNSF has 26 openings at various locations which will be offered to affected employees willing to relocate. We are working with the Carrier to assist in relocating the members wishing to do so. Questions may be relayed to your Local Chairman and/or your servicing General Chairman.
On February 22, 2017 the Coalition: IAM, TCU, BRC, TWU and IBEW, met with the National Carrier's Conference Committee (NCCC) to continue National Freight Negotiations.
New Executive Board Members: On behalf of President/Directing General Chairman John Lacey and the Staff of District Lodge 19, IAM&AW we would like to congratulate and thank the New Executive Board Members listed below for participating in the work of District Lodge 19.
Shayne Myers - LL 1333, Region 1
Dan Walker - LL 430, Region 1
Patrick Frederick - LL 612, Region 2
Jesse Jurek - LL 791, Region 3
Adam Lynch - LL 325, Region 3
Gerald Ware - LL 212, Region 4 and
Michael Mills - LL 1676, Region 5.
Canadian Pacific (CP) Railway is now hiring 10 Machinists in St. Paul, MN. You can go online at: www.cpr.ca/en/careers/
or contact the servicing General Chairman.
National Contract Negotiations resume February 22, 2017. Updates to follow shortly thereafter.
Congratulations to John Lawrence of Local Lodge 511, Kenneth Krause of Local Lodge 356, Mark Perez of Local Lodge 1041 and Shaun O’Connor of Local Lodge 498, who are the newest members of District Lodge 19’s Executive Board. Acting PDGC Lacey said, “We want to express our appreciation for your service and commitment to the membership of the District and I personally look forward to working with you all.”
National negotiations with the freight railroads and the IAM Coalition remain stalled, hostage to the Carriers’ unremitting demands for major concessionary changes to the healthcare plan.
Negotiations began in January of 2015. IAM invoked mediations in October 2015. The parties have met regularly since then under the auspices of the National Mediation Board. Little progress has been made.
Each side has exchanged voluminous information with the Carriers emphasizing what they consider to be high costs of the national health insurance plan relative to other industries, including non-union. The IAM coalition has stressed how much the plan design savings from the last contract have gone to hold down costs, that employees are paying enough now, and comparing us to non-union industries, is a non-starter. The parties also remain far apart on wages. And, at a recent session, the Carriers added a host of concessionary work rule demands to their agenda.
Our shop craft coalition, IAM, TCU, BRAC, IBEW & TWU met in mediation with the NCCC on October 25th to continue national negotiations. The cost of the national health & welfare plan was the main topic of discussion. At this point we are weeks away from the national elections and, once complete, look forward to a productive round of negotiations to be tentatively held December 6 & 7, 2016.
Local Lodge 356 from District Lodge 19 out of Kansas City held an informational picket at the Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad headquarters in Wichita, Kansas. Local lodge 356 was joined by members from local 378 out of Topeka, District 19 General Chairmen Michael McCarthy and Kyle Loos, along with support from the Southern Territory’s, District 70 and the Kansas State Counsel of Machinists.
The purpose of the informational picket was to inform the public of the anti-union tactics being used by the Carrier against our brothers & sisters, and to tell the K & O, Enough is Enough! (A)PDGC Lacey stated, “Today sent a strong message of strength, Machinist determination and solidarity. Over 40 IAM members from the Transportation Department and the Southern Territory joined together to send the K & O a message; Enough is Enough!” Lacey continued, “I would like to thank the General Chairmen for their leadership, and the membership from local 356 for their continued support, while we fight to bring justice and dignity to their work place. I also thank General Vice President Sito Pantoja and General Vice President Mark Blondin for their help with this very important fight.”
Our shop craft coalition, IAM, TCU, BRAC, IBEW & TWU, met in mediation with the NCCC on September 27th to continue national negotiations. The main issue of discussion was focused on healthcare benefits and the associated costs of the plan. Acting PDGC Lacey stated, “Our coalition is determined to maintain the current level of benefits while negotiating in good faith to bring resolve to this current round of negotiations with a contract our members will ratify with confidence.” The NCCC did not present any counter proposals in this round. We are currently scheduled to resume national negotiations on October 25, 2016.
Acting District 19 President Directing General Chairman John Lacey was invited by the White House to attend todays announcement by Vice President Joe Biden that the proposed deal between Amtrak and Alstom Transport has been finalized. The $2.45 billion train project calls for Alstom Transport to build new high-speed Acela trains to service Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor. Alstom Transport expects this deal to provide more than 500 new IAM Machinist jobs to its plant in Hornell, NY.
“I’d like to thank International President Martinez, the IAM Legislative Department, IAM District 19 and the skilled IAM workers at Alstom for making this happen,” said General Vice President Sito Pantoja. “This is the kind of thing that not only changes the lives of current and future IAM members but it also changes entire communities.”
“This is a major deal that will create about 500 high quality IAM jobs in Hornell, New York,” said International President Bob Martinez. “I’d like to thank the IAM’s Legislative and Transportation Departments for their dogged determination over many months to get this done.”
"It was an honor and a privilege to represent our members in District 19 and Local lodge 2741 in this historic announcement that will bring high quality jobs to the Hornell area," said PDGC John Lacey. "I would like to thank International President Bob Martinez, General Vice President Sito Pantoja and Legislative Director Hasan Solomon for all the efforts that were put forth to make this happen."
Part of the $2.45 in federal loans will be used to upgrade the passenger railroad’s current fleet. Amtrak will contract with Alstom to build 28 next-generation high-speed train sets that will replace the trains used as part of Amtrak’s Acela Express service. The trains will be built at Alstom’s Hornell and Rochester, N.Y., facilities.
“This loan is a key step to providing investments needed to help keep high-speed trains moving throughout the region, and to help all commuters in the Northeast Corridor,” said Vice President Biden. “We need these kinds of investments to keep this region — and our whole country — moving, and to create new jobs.”
District lodge 19, our coalition partners and the National Carrier’s Conference Committee (NCCC) are currently working with the National Mediation Board (NMB) in order to determine the availability of all parties so that we can proceed with our June meeting.
Unfortunately, we have no new information to report as our previous meeting was cancelled by the NMB. We are currently awaiting the counter-proposals from the NCCC regarding vacation, holidays, personal leave and bereavement.
Please rest assured that we will update you as new information develops. As many of you know, negotiating under the Railway Labor Act (RLA), especially in a national agreement involving many different Unions and Carriers, can be a long and arduous process. Despite that, District Lodge 19 remains committed to bringing back a fair agreement that rewards our Machinists for their incredible work in helping to keep America moving.