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Chicago, Fort Wayne and Eastern Railroad workers recently ratified their first-ever union contract and joined the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET). The National Mediation Board certified the election late last month.

The four-year pact covers 30 locomotive engineers who operate trains along the railroad’s 276 track miles between Crestline, Ohio, and Tolleston, Ind. The contract calls for 3 percent wage increases each year and provides workers a 401k plan, profit sharing, personal leave days and other benefits.

In August 2004, RailAmerica Inc. acquired the short line through a lease agreement with CSX Transportation. A division of the Teamsters Rail Conference, the BLET first organized the property in September 2005. Since 2002, the union has scored 13 short-line organizing victories.