The UTU generally has sold out the 8 hour day and the 5 day week, wherever possible, for a few dimes more for a few old head conductors. The Switchmen's Union of North America had it right, but these jobs are disappearing quickly. The airline guy earlier mentioned how that sucked too, and has also cost people their lives, like crew fatigue has killed on the RR's.

The sellout of the operating crafts, by the likes of "landslide" Fred Hardin, and Byron Boyd, and the ability of the carriers to pit the engineers against the ground crew has also meant that in the end, you have no one really negotiating for better hours and working conditions. Rather, it seems that these days, they mainly seem to negotiate over how much lube to apply.