NS agrees to paid sick leave for mechanical railroaders

Norfolk Southern Railway late last week announced it reached an agreement with another of its labor unions to provide members with the ability to take up to seven paid sick days per year.

The agreement with the National Conference of Firemen and Oilers calls for four new days of paid sick leave while also offering more flexibility to use three additional days of existing paid time off as sick leave, company officials said in a press release.

The agreement affects about 200 mechanical railroaders.

"Our craft employees are at the heart of our operation, and we will continue to collaborate with union leaders to discuss and implement new enhancements for these critical members of our team who keep our company and our country moving," said NS President and CEO Alan Shaw.

Also last week, NS and the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division reached an agreement calling for an extension of paid sick days for 3,000 engineering craft railroaders who work for NS.