“Norfolk Southern: Did Record Profits Come at the Cost of Safety?”

The railway company behind the Ohio derailment that sent hundreds of residents of East Palestine fleeing from the town on February 3rd, Norfolk Southern, has reported record profits of $3.2 billion in 2022 – despite drastically reducing their employee numbers, and their quality of life. Is this a case of profit over safety?

The Sheet Metal, Air, Rail Transportation Union and Ohio State Legislative Director, Clyde Whitaker, has been outspoken on the effects of Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR). In an interview with Woke Societies, Whitaker explains that PSR increases profits for the owners with less inspections and regulations, putting everyone at risk.

When asked about PSR, Whitaker stated: “You got it all right…a lot of the derailments you’re seeing on national TV is one of a few things:  it’s lacking maintenance on the track where they’ve cut the track gangs too short and they can’t get out to fix it or they’ve cut the Carmens, which is the union that works on the railcars…”

It has been reported that these cuts have reduced the time of inspection of cars from three minutes to ninety seconds – hardly enough