Onboard Attendants and Lead Attendants on the Brightline railroad in Florida voted today, Tuesday, January 14, 2025, to join the Transport Workers Union of America.
The National Mediation Board announced the election results in Washington, D.C., after weeks of balloting and an aggressive anti-union campaign by the privately-owned company.
Brightline has about 100 Onboard Attendants and Lead Attendants who sell food and beverages and provide other services on trains between Miami and Orlando. They voted to join the TWU on a roughly two-to-one margin. This is the largest newly organized group of railroad workers nationwide in over 20 years.
“Brightline ran an ugly anti-union, anti-worker campaign against their own workforce, but let’s put that behind us,” Transport Workers Union International President John Samuelsen said. “We’re committed to working to ensure the railroad is successful while helping our newest members secure better wages, better working conditions, respect in the workplace, and other goals that they set.”
The Transport Workers Union represents over 155,000 workers across the airline, rail, transit, university, and utility sectors of the economy. TWU Rail Division members include Car Inspectors, Cleaners, and other workers at Amtrak, Metro-North Railroad, PATH, CSX, Norfolk Southern, and Keolis, which provides service for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, among other railroads.
Last year, Brightline workers approached the TWU to seek representation to gain a voice in the workplace and address several issues. These include a draconian sick time policy, heavy-handed discipline without due process, erratic work schedules, and a failure to secure improvements from management.
“This is an enormous victory. Brightline workers – in the face of an aggressive anti-union campaign – voted roughly two-to-one to join the TWU,” Samuelsen said. “The Brightline president even went so far as to call workers at home in an apparent intimidation tactic. It obviously failed, epically.”
Voting by mail-in ballot began November 27, 2024, and continued through this morning. (Ballots had to have been received by the NMB this morning).
“The TWU has secured historic, industry-leading contracts for members in our Rail Division, and we look forward to continuing that success with our newest members at Brightline,” TWU Rail Division Director John Feltz said.
Brightline retained Littler Mendelson, a notorious anti-union law firm that has squashed union organizing efforts at Amazon, McDonalds, and other extremely profitable corporations. In meetings and emails to workers, Brightline grossly exaggerated the amount in union dues workers would pay and told workers the company couldn’t give them a pay raise for the foreseeable future because of the ongoing organizing drive – even though there is no law prohibiting an increase in wages. Although a direct correlation can’t yet be drawn, Brightline also has stepped up enforcement of an already draconian sick-time policy, leading to the firing of several workers.
The TWU will now work with Brightline workers to form a negotiating committee to begin drawing up a first contract with Brightline.