Norfolk Southern announced Feb. 22 that it had come to an agreement with one of its major labor unions to allow members to take up to seven paid sick days per year.
According to a story by PR Newswire, the agreement comes on the heels of a new bargaining agreement that established higher wages and improved benefits last year.
"Norfolk Southern's success is built upon the incredible work our craft railroaders perform every day, and we are committed to improving their quality of life in partnership with our union leaders," Norfolk Southern President and CEO Alan Shaw said, according to PR Newswire.
Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg urged the rail industry to improve safety and transparency in a Feb. 21 Department of Transportation release. That includes protecting workers who report safety issues from retaliation, introducing new inspection technologies and prioritizing "the human element." Additionally, Buttigieg called for paid sick leave for employees prior to the announcement of the union agreement.
In a Feb. 20 statement, Norfolk Southern announced it had exceeded its service to more than 2,200 families through its Family Assistance Center, which made direct payments worth more than $3.4 million to affected residents.
East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway requested the eligibility of the center be extended to all residents living in the local 44413 ZIP code, according to Norfolk Southern's statement. The company said it would assess individual requests from people living outside the ZIP code.
The company has also provided inconvenience payments to evacuated residents of Beaver County, Pennsylvania, the statement reported
"I want residents of East Palestine to know that Norfolk Southern will be in their community to help for as long as needed," Shaw said in the Norfolk Southern release. "Our new community liaison is a Norfolk Southern employee and resident of East Palestine. He will be an advocate for the community with a direct line to me and our senior leadership team."
