Rail unions want railroads to take some of the billions they're using every year to buy back their stock and spend it to improve safety in the wake of several high-profile derailments and hire more workers.
The 12 unions that represent all of the more than 100,000 workers across the industry said Friday that collectively the six biggest freight railroads spent over $165 billion on buybacks — well above the $119 billion they spent on upgrading and maintaining their track and equipment between 2015 and last year. At the same time, their safety record worsened as they cut costs and eliminated nearly one-third of all rail jobs.
