Racing trains

Funny thing after that last post, I was conducting a Emergency First Aid course and the attenders were all engineers from CN Rail.

Off course the conversation turned to what exactly would be big enough for them to feel it when it hit if it was across the tracks.  After listening to their stories about frozen moose and tree's upwards of 18 inches in diameter and not feeling anything in the cab, I am convinced (if I needed it) that racing the train is beyond ridiculous.

You can't win, slow down.   You all play safe today.  js

An Iron Clad Document

I did not write the following, and though I may agree or disagree with some of the statements I believe it is a good article to illustrate our current attitudes towards the safety of our workforce by reflecting on the past.  

I do not believe, if you had asked a business, industrial or railway man from the previous century or prior about his concern for his workers that he would have thought himself careless, I think he would have just fiqured it was the cost of business and development and something fiscally beyond his control.   We have all heard the term "act of God" or "beyond our control" (probably too often...). 

Enough of my comments, enjoy:

On October 24, 1908, Mrs. Avery Burke, from Crowley, Louisiana, received a telegram informing her that her husband was seriously injured while working as a railroad brakeman.

Unfortunately, many family members of railroaders received telegrams of the same nature in the 1800’s.
Needless to say, years ago a railroad brakeman’s job was an extremely dangerous one. Many were killed or maimed due to being crushed between railcars, tumbling from a railcar or falling between the cars of a moving train.
Before the advent of the automatic braking system, brakemen had to physically apply the brakes on each individual railcar au la main (by hand.) It was extremely dangerous and unsafe. The brakemen’s job was to climb on top of the roof of the railcar and walk on a narrow wooden catwalk or platform to get to the brake wheel, as the train was moving and the railcar was swaying from side to side and pitching under his feet. There were no handrails to grasp to steady themselves while performing their duties. Once a car’s brakes were applied or released, the brakemen had to cross the gap between the railcars by jumping in many, if not all, cases. And even in inclement weather.
The train’s length, determined how many brakemen were required on each train. Here, in Louisiana, on flat terrain, only two were usually required, the head and rear brakemen. Their job was to actually walk on top of the railcars while the train was moving. The train’s Engineer would signal, by the use of the train’s horn or whistle, when to apply or to release the brakes by turning a brake wheel.
There were numerous times the signals were not heard or were misinterpreted; and subsequently, many times, a derailment or collision occurred because of the inability to stop the train in a timely manner.
When the automatic airbrake system was adopted it greatly improved the railroad safety. No longer were brakemen required to risk life and limb to stop a train; and now with the locomotive engineer in control of the brakes, whistle signal misinterpretation for applying and releasing brakes were eliminated. As a result, longer and heavier trains could safety run at higher speeds.
During this era, before automatic airbrake system and the link and pin couplers, railroaders could not purchase life insurance due to the hazardous nature and frequency of on the job fatalities and injuries!
Benevolent societies were created for the purpose of collecting donations to give to a bereaved family after the death or serious injury to a co-worker. In the 1860’s when unions were first created, contrary to popular belief, they were not created for safety reasons. Their primary purpose was to provide life insurance to the members who died as a result of their extremely hazardous duties. At the time union organizations were formed, seventy percent of all train crews could expect an injury within five years of service. In 1893, over 18,000 railroad workers were injured and 1,657 were killed. In addition, prior to the unions there were no laws requiring safety in the rail industry, or seniority rights for employees; and employees were fired at the whim of company officers. In fact, any employee of the rail industry who attempted to form or belong to a union was fired without recourse. 
Many railroad employees were required to sign a contract, infamously known as a “yellow dog contract or clause” at the time of hire, which meant immediate removal from service, or fired, to any employee who joined a union. This agreement containing a pledge not to join a union was also referred to as the “Infamous Document,” and sometimes called an “iron clad document.” The name, “iron clad” soon became synonymous with non-union promise until the close of the nineteenth-century.
In 1893, one of the first victories for unions was won with the passage of the Safety Appliance Act that outlawed the “old man-killer”, the link and pin coupler, which required a trainmen to hold the link in one hand, while the engineer shoved his train or railcars towards the car to be coupled to, as the trainmen inserted the pin into the link to secure the coupling. Lots of fingers and hands were mangled, not to mention life and limb.
Five years later, in 1898, another Congressional Act made it a criminal offense for railroads to dismiss employees or to discriminate against prospective employees because of their union membership or activity. Other acts and laws soon followed which greatly improved safety and working conditions for the employees in the rail industry.Today, railroad work is still dangerous, but not unsafe as it once was.

Hattip to: William  http://conservativecajun.blogspot.com/

Play safe today.  js

Home from Dryden

Just home from Dryden, attended a conference on Entreprenueship.  It was interesting to talk and meet with small and large businessmen and women and consultants in other and similar fields.

Talked with a President of a trucking company which has successfully set up themselves to met the ISO standards.  This is a good idea and will open her company up to new contracts from organizations that require this standard among their bidders.

I am all for bringing our work standards up, the only difficulty I have is that too many times, the senior management 'buys in' but the workforce and middle management do not.

Leadership is everything, if the senior management allow themselves to get to busy focused on the bottomline or meeting deadlines the first thing to go (especially in smaller organizations) will be the safety rules... we're all in a hurry and the job needs to get done, the order needs to be met, etc etc.

Safety management needs to be on the front boiler for all senior managers and owners.  When I was talking with this woman president, I mentioned that I have taught various course's on sites where the attendee's had no idea who I was, (just a "WHMIS", "First Aid" or "whatever") instructor.  I try to always utilize the companies safety policy in any training.  When workers body language speaks, it speaks volumes.

You should regularly question your employees confidentially as to what they truely thing of your safety record and act on the deficiencies, most do not cost money just time.  Serious accidents have a habit of being under the radar until they strike.

It was enjoyable to talk with a CEO who was dedicated to her workforce and organization.  js