BNSF To Lease Conroe Sub
For the first time in well over 100 years it appears
the East-West Railroad thru Conroe, Tx will no longer carry Santa Fe in
it's name. Effective July 1, 2004.
From the Silsbee
Bee:
By Dwayne Davis
In
what was touted as a "Town Hall Meeting" held Friday, April 2, at the
Beaumont Hilton, Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Railroad executives
met with concerned employees from the Silsbee train yard, and discussed
the future of their employment status. They were informed that as early
as July 1, many of their jobs
continued on page 2
would no longer be at the Silsbee train yard.
The meeting was held behind closed doors,
allowing only personnel
from the company access to the meeting. Railroad police asked all media
agencies to vacate the capacity-filled meeting room.
John
C. Klaus, General Manager of BNSF's Gulf Division was on-hand to preside
over the three meetings which were scheduled for 9 a.m., 1 p.m. and 5
p.m., to allow for employees from differing shifts to be able to attend.
The
specific purpose of the meeting was to provide information regarding the
"disposition of the Conroe and Silsbee Subdivisions between Dobbin and
Beaumont."
In
a post meeting interview with BNSF public affairs spokesman, Joe Faust,
who has been with the company since 1996, he explained that the meetings
are an integral way for BNSF to communicate the issues of importance to
their employees. He explained that at the present that there were no
specifics to be reported on the jobs of the Silsbee yard employees.
"Annually
at BNSF, we look at our entire network to determine what is the most
profitable method of operations for our infrastructure, and how we can
most effectively serve our customers," Faust stated. "We have found that
some routes in our network can be more efficiently operated by smaller
short-line type railroad companies. The Silsbee route, in our
estimation, falls under that formula."
Faust
said the Silsbee subdivision covers 120.7 miles of track from Dobbin to
Beaumont. In an earlier interview, he stated that BNSF was not
abandoning the track, but was in active negotiations to procure a third
party that would lease the span of tracks which service Conroe, Longview
and Silsbee.
Faust
said that at the present there are several companies involved in
deliberations, and that no plans have been finalized.
"We
want to let our employees know what their employment status is," Faust
assured. "At present there are approximately 150 employees on the
Silsbee roster. It has not yet been determined as to how many will be
called upon to relocate.
"In
terms of BNSF, there are positions all over our network," Faust stated.
"It is a matter of relocation for those whose jobs will end in Silsbee.
I don't want that to sound trite or simple, because we know that
families being uprooted abruptly is never easy. It a major concern for
us. We want our dedicated employees to be assured that there are
positions available."
Faust
added that in no way was the third party leasee under any obligation to
hire any of BNSF's employees, but that he would suspect that whoever
takes over the day to day operations of the yard, would be wise to
consider the experience and familiarity of those workers.
"The
jobs that our employees have currently are union jobs, which are under
labor agreements," Faust explained. "If they have seniority, they can
utilize that leverage. The current union agreement dates back to 1995,
when the two lines merged."
According
to Faust, there is high demand at BNSF for all the different crafts, and
opportunity is great for their employees, if they are willing to move.
BNSF
operations in Beaumont will go on as is, according to Faust, with no
plans for change. Paul Tibbit, a United Transportation Union
representative that was present at the meeting said that BNSF was being
factual and up front with their information, but it was just not what
those in attendance were wanting to hear.
"They didn't sugar coat
it," Tibbit said. "They gave the facts, and the facts are that around 50
train and engine workers are going to be adversely affected by this
business decision."
Tibbit
said that the rumor had been circulating since last March that BNSF was
planning to make a move, and the consensus is that Timber Rock Railroad
who currently operates 30 miles of service from Silsbee to Kirbyville
will be the third party short-line service.
L.
M. Hooks, a 54 year employee for the railroad, was on hand for the
meeting and said that it will probably mean his retirement. Mechanical
employees in the Silsbee yard, might have got the best news of all, in
that Omni Trax would continue to use the yard as a staging area for its
repair operations, thus providing work for those that "pull the
wrenches."
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