2 pacts reached on Florida East Coast

Two tentative four-year agreements have been reached between the UTU and Florida East Coast Railway (FEC).

One of the tentative four-year agreements covers FEC conductors, engineers, trainmen and yardmen represented by the UTU.

The second tentative four-year pact covers FEC yardmasters represented by the UTU.

The tentative agreements, retroactive to Jan. 1, 2009, and extending through Dec. 31, 2012, cover wages, benefits and working conditions. The tentative agreements must be ratified by the crafts, and include retroactive pay.

Town hall meetings, to explain the tentative agreements prior to a ratification vote, will be conducted across the property during January.

UTU negotiators included General Chairperson John Hancock and Vice General Chairperson John Whitaker (both, GO 851), Local 903 Chairperson Jim Bush, and Local 1138 Chairperson Jim McCorkle. The UTU negotiating team was assisted by UTU International Vice President Robert Kerley.

FEC is a Class II railroad, operating more than 350 miles of mainline track along Florida’s east coast. In November, FEC completed 2,000 consecutive days of on-time service to UPS — a record for any transportation company serving the logistics giant. During that almost 5 1/2 year period, FEC delivered 125,000 on-time intermodal loads for UPS, consisting of more than 200 million packages.