Written by Doug Riddell, Guest Columnist, Railway Age Magazine; December 11, 2017
I read with interest Railway Age’s most recent reporting of the failure of Amtrak’s safety culture. From a retired employee’s perspective, let’s admit that the “S” in safety is a dollar sign. Railroads institutionally (not just Amtrak) preach safety but practice inconsistency when it comes to implementation.
The late Stan Bagley, a highly respected Amtrak executive, and personal friend during my career there, once responded to my query about our division’s exorbitant level of safety promotion funding. His answer was that for what was paid out in FELA settlements alone, he could afford to buy each employee a new car. As an industry, on the corporate level, we make a blanket commitment to safety. Locally, we distribute hats and jackets, pay for barbecues and banquets, and paper bulletin boards with accolades for jobs well done. We lavish all manner of rewards on our employees to convince them that the railroad’s chief concern is safety. In doing so, we attempt to turn skepticism into belief.
Click here to read the full story.