Jacksonville, Florida – On Tuesday, May 7, 2024, ATDA and CSX entered into two pilot program agreements that will improve quality of life for its Guaranteed Assigned Train Dispatchers (GATDs).
Currently, GATD-board dispatchers are required to be on call for all shifts. The “Shift-Specific GATD Pilot” program will create three shift-assigned positions (one for each of three shifts) and incumbents will only be required to protect vacancies on their assigned shift.
The second pilot program provides all GATD-board dispatchers on the covered Division with two guaranteed consecutive rest days. Typically, these employees get two rest days in a work week, but only one of the days is known in advance. The company has the prerogative to place the second rest day anywhere in the work week. Under the “Consecutive Rest Days Pilot” program however, GATD-board dispatchers will have two consecutive days off which are known in advance and are not subject to change.
While the pilot programs are temporary for now as the concepts are evaluated, they remain an important first step along the path of implementing permanent change. Commenting on this, CSX System Committee General Chairman Ben Craft said, “These pilots are a step in the right direction towards improving quality of life issues faced by our members, especially extra-board employees. I’m looking forward to seeing the pilots in action and I’m optimistic they can translate into permanent work rule improvements.”
ATDA Vice President Colin Thurman further emphasized the pilot programs as reason for optimism, saying, “I want to congratulate General Chairman Ben Craft on a great accomplishment. These pilots underscore the progress we can make when the ATDA and CSX collaborate to find creative solutions to improve quality of life for our members.”