Two-person crews are the first step to improving railway safety

Jared Cassity, the Alternate National Legislative Director of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers Transportation Department (SMART TD), joined America’s Work Force Union Podcast to talk about the new ruling setting a minimum of two-person crews for all trains. He also discussed the everyday improvements that the Rail Safety Act could provide and how close he believes it is to passing. 

Cassity entered the rail industry in 2005 when he began work as a conductor with CSX. He said he learned early in his career how toxic the rail industry's work environment could become. After many negative experiences and poor safety standards in his first six months, he began working to change the workplace through his Local with SMART (at the time, the United Transportation Union, which merged with SMWIA in 2014 to become SMART). Eventually, after serving in several roles within his Local, Cassity was elected to the International as Alternate National Legislative Director for the SMART TD in 2019. He is also the union’s Chief of Safety, as well as the SMART TD National Safety Team Director.

Requiring trains to be operated by two-person crews wasn’t a simple process. Cassity talked about the long process to get to this point. Efforts started with a proposal under the Obama Administration following an accident on the Canada-U.S. border that led Canada to mandate a minimum of two-person crews. Due to a change in leadership in the U.S. government, these efforts didn’t succeed until Presiden Biden issued a new rule in early 2024.

Finally, Cassity explained the various benefits if the proposed Rail Safety Act is passed. If The standards were already in place, several significant incidents could have been avoided. For example, he said the derailment that occurred in East Palestine, Ohio, which led to a chemical burnoff that jeopardized civilian health and safety, could have been prevented with the Rail Safety Act. Avoiding another incident like that East Palestine derailment is Cassity's highest priority, and with the help of legislators, most safety concerns on the rail could be resolved.

Listen to the show above to hear more from Cassity.