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6/2/2021
Former Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) National Vice President Stephen Speagle died May 26. He was 74.
Speagle began his railroad career in 1964 as a switchman for the Norfolk & Western Railroad in Decatur, Illinois. He was promoted to locomotive engineer and joined the BLET as a member of Division 155 in Decatur in 1972.
Speagle was elected to the office of international VP of the then-Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers in September 2001 and was reelected in 2006. He announced his retirement in 2010.
Speagle helped to negotiate many contracts during his tenure as a union officer, including agreements with Norfolk Southern Railway while serving as general chairman, and with BNSF Railway Co. while assigned as a national VP. He also helped negotiate a contract for members at Pacific Harbor Line in 2005.
The agreements helped boost pay rates of pay and improve working conditions for members, BLET officials said in a news release.