Railroads: Invest in Safety, Not Wall Street

Freight Railroad CEOs

Image of freight train with text "Demand No Stock Buybacks"

Freight train derailments are happening on nearly a daily basis in this country and too many rail workers have died on the job this year.

Now is not the time to send more cash to Wall Street when freight railroads can’t protect the workers who keep the trains running or the Americans whose communities these trains travel through. It's time for freight companies to stop putting profits first and safety second.

We call on freight railroad CEOs to take the No Stock Buybacks Pledge!

Freight Railroad CEOs pledge to spend not one dollar in stock buybacks until:

  • The industry ends its Wall Street operating model known as Precision Scheduled Railroading.
  • The rate of safety accidents decreases across the industry and workers feel safe on the job.

Safety must be the #1 priority. Not $1 in stock buybacks until this is achieved.

Over the last 10 years, six publicly-traded U.S. freight rail companies spent more than $146 billion in stock buybacks and dividends, which is at least $30 billion more than they invested in their businesses. It's time for these companies to invest in safety measures instead of shareholders.

In 2015, freight railroads switched to a business model known as Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR). This is a Wall Street business model that is designed to maximize profits, not safety. The goal of Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR) is to cut costs in order to increase shareholder profits. Thanks to this greedy corporate business model, the freight rail workforce is smaller, trains are longer, and the rate of accidents has increased.

At Norfolk Southern, CSX, and Union Pacific, the rate of incidents per train mile increased significantly from 2013 to 2022. In the rail yards, the rate of incidents more than doubled for some railroads.

For years, rail workers have been sounding the alarm about safety issues. It's time to listen to rail workers, not rail CEOs. It's time to end PSR now. If freight rail CEOs don’t prioritize safety over profits, the crisis will unfortunately continue.

Add your name to demand that freight rail CEOs take the No Stock Buybacks pledge to make public safety their #1 priority. No stock buybacks until the rail industry is back on track!

To: Freight Railroad CEOs
From: [Your Name]

Dear Freight Railroad CEO,

We call on freight rail companies to invest in their safety operations and the workers who make their systems run safely. Now is not the time to send more cash to Wall Street when freight railroads can’t protect the workers who keep the trains running or the Americans whose communities these trains travel through.

Derailments are happening on nearly a daily basis in this country and too many rail workers have died on the job this year. It's time for freight companies to stop putting profits first and safety second.

Invest in public safety, not Wall Street.

Take the No Stock Buybacks Pledge. Pledge to cease stock buybacks until safety improves. Not one dollar in stock buybacks until:

- The industry ends its Wall Street operating model known as Precision Scheduled Railroading.
- The rate of safety accidents decreases across the industry and workers feel safe on the job.

Safety must be your #1 priority. We demand not $1 in stock buybacks until the rail industry is back on track.