BLET Members Ratify New Implementing Agreement

(IANR Photograph)

Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) members have voted in favor of an implementing agreement regarding CN’s proposed acquisition of Iowa Northern, the union reported in the May 31 edition of its weekly email newsletter.

The union announced the vote in early May; ballots were due May 30 and tabulated the same day.

“The implementing agreement addresses changes in operations and the merging of workforces if the acquisition is approved by the federal Surface Transportation Board [STB],” BLET said. “Under the proposed implementing agreement, the BLET’s CN-IC contract would become the applicable collective bargaining agreement for about 20 locomotive engineers currently employed by Iowa Northern.”

According to BLET, collective bargaining rights for the Iowa Northern locomotive engineers now fall under the jurisdiction of the union’s CN-IC General Committee of Adjustment, which represents about 550 active members.

CN on Dec. 6, 2023, signed and closed an agreement to acquire Iowa Northern, an approximately 275-mile U.S. Class II (regional) railroad that it interchanges with in Waterloo and Cedar Rapids. Terms were not disclosed. An application was filed with the STB on Jan. 30, 2024.

According to CN, the transaction “represents a meaningful opportunity to support the growth of local business by creating single-line service to North American destinations, while preserving access to existing carrier options.” The Canadian Class I expects a decision this year.

“General Chairman Billy Evans described the [potential] acquisition as a ‘win-win,’ with Iowa Northern engineers gaining more protection and better wages under the BLET contract and with the CN-IC gaining more business by adding Iowa Northern and its customers to its portfolio,” BLET reported in its May 31 newsletter.

Iowa Northern serves upper Midwest agricultural and industrial markets, hauling such commodities as biofuels and grain. According to the regional’s website, it handles more than 60,000 carloads per year. Established in 1984, Iowa Northern runs diagonally through Iowa northwest to southeast from Manly to Cedar Rapids, with branch lines from Waterloo to Oelwein and from Forest City to Belmond (see map above). When a group led by Daniel Sabin, a second-generation railroader and current Chairman, took over management in 1994, the regional handled 15,000 revenue cars annually and its average track speed was under 10 mph, according to Iowa Northern.

IANR also interchanges with Union Pacific (UP) at Manly; Canadian Pacific Kansas City at Nora Springs; and UP and Railway Age two-time Short Line of the Year honoree Cedar Rapids and Iowa City (to Iowa Interstate Railroad) at Cedar Rapids.

“If the tentative implementing agreement is approved, collective bargaining rights for the Iowa Northern locomotive engineers would fall under the jurisdiction of the BLET’s CN-IC General Committee of Adjustment,” BLET reported. According to the union, General Chairman Billy Evans described the situation as a “‘win-win,’ with Iowa Northern engineers gaining more protection and better wages under the BLET contract, and with the CN-IC gaining more business by adding the Iowa Northern and its customers to its portfolio.”

Further Reading

• CN-IANR Merger Proposal: ‘Value Add’ for Ag
• USDA, NGFA Weigh In on Proposed CN-IANR Combination
• STB Denies CPKC’s Petition Seeking Reconsideration of the Board’s Prior Decision to Classify CN’s Acquisition of Iowa Northern a “Minor Transaction”
• Shippers, Small Roads Weigh In on CN-IANR Merger Proposal