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Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers President Don Hahs believes a three-pronged approach (education, information and empowerment) would help eliminate fatigue by providing rail-operating employees a right to reject additional work if they become tired after working a set amount of hours each month.


Hahs, testifying July 10 before the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee's Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Subcommittee, said unreliable work schedules, under-staffing and hours-of-service loopholes contribute to fatigue but "each employee has an individual threshold for tolerating it," according to a prepared statement.


He believes Congress should serve as a mediator and facilitator, bringing essential parties together to address worker fatigue as a way of improving safety.