News and Media

Washington, DC — Edward Wytkind, president of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), issues this statement on House passage of the Surface Transportation Reauthorization and Reform Act of 2015 (STRRA): “Bipartisanship claimed victory today on the floor of the House as lawmakers rejected partisan business as usual in favor of passing a long-term highway-transit reauthorization […]

As Published by Mark Gruenberg in People’s World House passes highway-transit bill, delays rail safety WASHINGTON – By voice vote and with little debate, the GOP-run House whipped through a short-term – three-week – extension of federal highway and mass transit programs and the gas tax that funds them, on Oct. 27. The Senate was […]

Edward Wytkind, president of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), issues the following statement regarding best practices for labor standards for public-private partnerships issued by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA): “We are pleased that the Administration has unveiled a more responsible approach to public-private partnerships, or P3s, by taking into consideration their effect on workers. For […]

[As published by Edward Wytkind in Aviation Week] In the board game of Monopoly, the rules are straightforward. Pass “Go,” collect $200. Do not pass “Go,” do not collect $200. When it comes to the rules of international aviation in the U.S., the standards are similar. Apply for and receive a foreign air operator’s certificate (AOC) from […]

[As published By John Previsich And Edward Wytkind in The Modesto Bee] California has more museums dedicated to railroads than any other state in our country – and it’s easy to see why. From the transcontinental railroad to the developing high-speed rail system, rail transportation has played a significant role in shaping this state’s history. The […]

Washington, D.C. – Edward Wytkind, president of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO, issues this statement in response to the United States Senate’s confirmation of Sarah Feinberg as Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration: “I congratulate Sarah Feinberg on her confirmation by the Senate as Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). Feinberg brings to this […]

WASHINGTON, DC — Transportation labor leaders — gathered today at the fall Executive Committee meeting of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD) — met with key members of Congress to seek solutions to a woefully underfunded transportation system and to boost job creation in what remains a slow recovery that TTD’s leader said is “leaving […]

WASHINGTON, DC — The Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), and its affiliated aviation and maritime unions today urged President Obama to reject the job-killing proposals by the European Union (EU) to include aviation and maritime transport services in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) agreement. “We are not interested in seeing the U.S. aviation […]

As published by Chris Opfer in Bloomberg BNA Hair and Drug Testing Delayed in Transportation Bill Transportation businesses will have to wait at least a year to start taking hair samples to test workers for drugs, under the surface transportation reauthorization bill (H.R. 3763) approved by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Oct. 22. Unlike the […]

As published by Amanda Chicago Lewis in BuzzFeed News A Potentially Racist Drug Test Could Become Standard For Truckers Congress is poised to let the commercial trucking and bus industries rely solely on hair drug tests that have been found to have two troubling problems: Black people are more likely to test positive than whites, […]