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Alabama & Gulf Coast Railway maintenance-of-way workers recently approved their first “wage, benefits and working conditions agreement” as United Transportation Union (UTU) members, according to the union.

The workers had chosen the UTU as their collective bargaining agent in July 2009. The short line’s train and engine workers, who've been UTU members since 2007, are covered by a union-negotiated agreement.

The MOW workers’ pact includes pay rate improvements, paid bereavement leave, two additional personal-leave days, increased meal allowances and participation in a profit-sharing plan at RailAmerica Inc., which owns the Alabama & Gulf Coast.

The short line operates about 400 miles of track, including a mainline from Pensacola, Fla., to Columbus, Miss., and a branch line from Mobile to Kimbrough, Ala. Alabama & Gulf Coast interchanges with BNSF Railway Co., CSX Transportation, Illinois Central-CN, Kansas City Southern and Norfolk Southern Railway.