Railroad Worker Fatigue an Update

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• Railroad Worker Fatigue an Update
• Prepared for the
• Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers Trainmen
• A Division of the Railway Conference of the
• International Brotherhood of Teamsters
• Mark K. Ricci, Ph.D.
• May 2005

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BLET Efforts to Address Fatigue

• Since 2002, the BLET has attempted two major
  non-prescriptive efforts to address railroad
  worker fatigue.

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Non Prescriptive Efforts

• While non-prescriptive efforts may arguably be
  advantageous, at some point in time, the BLET
  must determine if a non-prescriptive approach to
  resolving railroad worker fatigue is feasible
  based on
• effectiveness---do they work to reduce worker
  fatigue
• comprehensiveness---do they address all aspects
  of railroad worker fatigue
• inclusiveness---are all railroads in the US
  participating in the solution

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Education Information Empowerment

• The 2002 BLE fatigue proposal suggested that if
• railroad workers were educated about fatigue and
  how to avoid it, and
• if Management and Labor would work together
  exchanging information about improving schedules
  and other work practices that contributed to
  fatigue, and

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E.I.E continued

• if railroad workers were permitted to absent
  themselves from duty if their individual fatigue
  interfered with their ability to safely perform
  their duties
• then fatigue in the railroad industry could be
  resolved for the good of management and labor.

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E.I.E. Results?

• The E.I.E. initiative was not embraced by the
  railroad industry.
• Throughout 2003 and 2004, no systemic solutions
  have been adopted by any single railroad or the
  industry generally.

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• The BLET believes only a systemic solution will
  truly address the issue of unsafe levels of
  railroad worker fatigue in the railroad industry

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How important is resolving Fatigue to railroad
workers?

• In a recent survey by the BLET, 89.1 of BLET
  members responding said work/rest cycles were
  important or extremely important.
• Also, 88.3 of BLET members responding identified
  layoff provisions as important or extremely
  important.
• BLET members are asking with gusto for a solution
  to the fatigue problem.

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FATIGUE MANAGEMENT PLANS

• Europe, Australia, Canada have all addressed
  fatigue using culturally acceptable processes.
• Most notably, Canada has employed fatigue
  management plans that several US railroads have
  implemented in their Canadian operations.

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A BLET Fatigue Management Plan

• From the perspective of the BLET, an effective
  fatigue management plan in the US railroad
  industry will require a plan that incorporates
  education, addresses medical aspects of fatigue,
  critical aspects of fatigue, chronic aspects of
  fatigue, and establishes a method of evaluation
  that feeds-back into the process to determine if
  fatigue in the work place has been reduced.

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Education Aspects of a Fatigue Management Plan

• Senior Management
• the need and efficacy of successful fatigue
  management planning
• Railroad Supervisors
• importance of supporting and incorporating the
  iterative process of managing railroad worker
  fatigue into the daily regimen of railroad
  operations Culture change

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Education Continued

• Railroad Workers
• recent research of fatigue mitigation
• recent sleep research
• health and fitness information
• new worker education
• And presented in a multi-faceted format for easy
  accessibility

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Medical Aspects of a Fatigue Management Plan

• Instituting a policy or collective bargaining
  agreement that acknowledges and treats fatigue
  from medical problems just as it would any other
  medical issue is necessary for effective
  implementation and resolution of fatigue
  resulting from medical problems.

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Medical Aspects of a Fatigue Management Plan
(cont.)

• Medical Provider Education
• Identifying appropriate medical treatment
  options for railroad workers and making the
  information available
• Individual Responsibility
• With reassurance, individuals will have the
  tools necessary to resolve personally with their
  private physician a medical intervention to be
  properly rested. A peer intervention process may
  supplement this effort.

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Critical Fatigue Aspects of a Fatigue Management
Plan

• Short Term Sleep Loss
• railroad workers are reporting 4 hours or less of
  sleep during an 8 hour off duty time period
• A minimum 5-8 hours necessary in 24 hours
  (Dawson, Dinges, NSF)
• Circadian Rhythms
• may be complimentary to mitigating short term
  sleep loss, or the solutions may involve separate
  fatigue mitigation efforts

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Chronic Fatigue Aspects of a Fatigue Management
Plan

• Sleep Debt Research
• accumulated fatiguing factors that build over
  the course of a work week (Dinges, NSF, DOT)
• Health Aspects
• unpredictable schedules can result in the best
  efforts by an individual to address health
  aspects of fatigue resulting in higher levels of
  fatigue

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Evaluation of a Fatigue Management Plan

• in all cases, management and labor will be
  determining whether medical, critical, and
  chronic aspects of fatigue have been reduced in
  the railroad workplace
• a tool to initiate a continuous improvement
  process

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Individual Responsibility

• Mitigating unsafe levels of railroad worker
  fatigue ultimately relies heavily on individual
  railroad workers taking responsibility for their
  personal work and sleep habits. However, in order
  for individuals to exercise personal
  responsibility for managing fatigue, those
  individuals must be provided with the tools
  necessary to implement personal fatigue
  mitigation efforts. These tools include
  education, information, but most importantly the
  time to sleep and recuperate from fatiguing
  schedules.

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COMPUTER MODELING OF FATIGUE

• railroad management, railroad labor, and
  government agencies do not share a common vision
  for possible use of computer models
• the models at present are not a significant
  threat to BLET members interests / they may
  actually evolve into a valuable tool at some
  future date

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STRATEGIES AND TIMELINES FOR RESOLVING FATIGUE

• Failing a successful non-prescriptive solution of
  fatigue, there are two possible avenues for
  government-imposed solutions to railroad worker
  fatigue a Congressional mandate and/or a
  regulatory mandate from the FRA. The BLET has
  identified and prepared a process for each of
  these possibilities.

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Where are we now?

• The BLET and various railroads are in different
  stages of developing proposals, working out
  processes, and implementing fatigue mitigation
  efforts.
• These efforts are elaborated below based on a
  comparison between Fall 2004 and Spring 2005.
  The BLET Fatigue Management Plan is used as the
  reference tool.

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WRITTEN PLAN

• Railroad
• October 2004
• Proposed
• Agreed
• April 2005
• Proposed
• Agreed

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EDUCATION ASPECTS

• Railroad
• 2004
• Executive
• Mid-Manage
• Worker
• 2005
• Executive
• Mid-Manage
• Worker

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MEDICAL ASPECTS

• Railroad
• 2004
• Policy
• Needed Tools
• Appeal Process
• 2005
• Policy
• Needed Tools
• Appeal Process

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CRITICAL ASPECTS(Circadian Rhythms)

• Railroad
• October 2004
• Proposed
• Agreed
• April 2005
• Proposed
• Agreed

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CHRONIC ASPECTS(Sleep Debt)

• Railroad
• October 2004
• Proposed
• Agreed
• April 2005
• Proposed
• Agreed

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EVALUATION

• Railroad
• October 2004
• Proposed
• Agreed
• April 2005
• Proposed
• Agreed

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Important Note

• While progress has been made, all of the
  successes are qualified.
• They might not be fully implemented
• They might need union ratification
• They might need to be made public
• Etc.
• The GOAL of the BLET is to turn all the red into
  green..

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Where do we go from here?

• June Meetings of work/rest will look at how to
  write a fatigue management plan and how to
  evaluate a fatigue management plan.
• August Meetings of NARAP will look at how to
  implement the education plan and how to evaluate
  the education plan.

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TRUST but VERIFY

• BLET has a scientific proposal to evaluate
  fatigue management plans in US railroads.
• The plan would be paid for by grants.
• The railroads have been invited to participate.
• The BLET has the ability to proceed without the
  railroads if it chooses.

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