Policy

Dear Speaker Pelosi, Leader McConnell, Leader McCarthy and Leader Schumer: On behalf of the hundreds of thousands of aviation professionals that we collectively represent, we appreciate your efforts to help keep the airline industry afloat during the healthcare and economic crises caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act saved jobs through the Payroll Support Program (PSP) that allocated $32 billion in payroll grants to commercial airlines and airline contractors exclusively “for the continuation of employee wages, salaries, and benefits.” This critical legislation has kept hundreds of thousands of airline workers employed and covered under their healthcare plans during the pandemic. This aid has sustained an industry of national importance, helped our economy, and preserved our communities’ connectivity to the national and global economy.

Dear Representative: On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I strongly urge you to vote in favor of H.R. 2, the INVEST in America Act as it is considered today in the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

Dear Senator: On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD) I urge you to oppose the nomination of Nancy Beck as Chair of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). In her current role at the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Nancy Beck has played a major role in weakening the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines on safely reopening workplaces during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is particularly concerning for the frontline transportation workers represented by our affiliated unions.

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I am pleased to provide comments on Montana Rail Link Inc.’s petition concerning changes to revenue thresholds for the classification of rail carriers. By way of background, TTD consists of 33 affiliate unions, including unions representing freight rail workers who may be impacted by the granting of this petition.

Dear Senators Shelby, Leahy, Collins, and Reed: The working people who make Amtrak run have long stood with the carrier in fighting to secure the funding it needs to operate a national intercity passenger rail network, capable of serving millions of Americans each year. Our commitment to ensuring the long-term viability of Amtrak has not changed, particularly as it deals with the consequences of COVID-19.

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), and our 33 affiliated unions, I want to first thank Chairman DeFazio and Ranking Member Graves for inviting me to testify today on the impacts of COVID-19 on the transportation workforce. I am also proud to be here today with witnesses from two TTD-affiliated unions; Susannah Carr, a United Airlines flight attendant on behalf of the Association of Flight Attendants, CWA and Tom Shaw, a transit operator at SEPTA on behalf of the Transport Workers Union.

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), and our 33 affiliated unions, I want to first thank Chairman Wicker and Ranking Member Cantwell for inviting me to testify today on the impact of COVID-19 on the surface transportation sector and associated challenges.[1] As COVID-19 has spread across the nation, causing over 100,000 deaths and unprecedented disruption to our way of life, we appreciate the opportunity to share the perspective of the frontline transportation workforce.

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I am pleased to respond to FMCSA’s request for comment on its notice Hours of Service of Drivers: Pronto.ai, Inc. (Pronto); Application for Exemption. TTD consists of 33 affiliate unions representing workers in all modes of transportation, including drivers of commercial motor vehicles.[1] We therefore have a vested interest in this policy.

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD) I urge you to oppose S. 3730, the Registered Traveler Act of 2020. This legislation dangerously expands the existing Registered Traveler (RT) program to allow private entities to perform security functions without proper oversight and accountability. This bill as written is opposed by both the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), the union that represents transportation security officers, and should be rejected by the Senate Commerce Committee during markup. 

On behalf of the undersigned American maritime labor organizations we wish to express our sincere appreciation for your support for the programs and policies important to the U.S.-flag maritime industry and to the jobs of the licensed and unlicensed American merchant mariners we represent.  Unfortunately, our industry is experiencing a dangerous decline in the number of trained and qualified American merchant mariners available to crew the surge and sustainment vessels needed by the Department of Defense to protect America’s interests and to support American troops deployed around the world.