A GE AC4400CW diesel-electric locomotive in Union Pacific livery is seen close to Union Station in Los Angeles on Sept. 15, 2022.
Bing Guan | Reuters
Locomotive engineers at Union Pacific voted to ratify a new five-year contract with the railroad operator, the BLET-Teamsters union mentioned on Friday.
Under the new contract, almost 6,000 members represented by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, a division of the rail convention of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), will earn raises of 18.8% over the lifetime of the settlement.
The contract additionally contains improved well being and welfare advantages, the union mentioned.
Last week, the most important U.S. railroad union, SMART-TD, authorised Union Pacific’s $85 billion acquisition of Norfolk Southern, serving to to advance a deal that had been anticipated to face resistance from unions and regulators.
The deal will create the nation’s first coast-to-coast freight rail operator and reshape the motion of products from grains to autos throughout the nation.
The two corporations are anticipated to file a proper merger software with the Surface Transportation Board, which oversees rail competitors and repair, by late October or by January 2026.