U.S. President's Railroad Commission Glass Lantern Slides

The U.S. Presidential Railroad Commission was established by Executive Order No. 10891 of November 1, 1960, to consider a controversy between carriers represented by the Eastern, Western, and Southeastern Carriers' Conference Committees and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen, the Order of Railway Conductors and Brakemen, the Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen, and the Switchmen's Union of North America. Specifically, the controversy surrounded the assertion by the carriers that firemen were not needed on diesel locomotives and that their positions should be eliminated. The unions, on the other hand, maintained that modern diesel locomotives were much too complex to be operated by one engineer and that firemen were necessary to ensure safety. Seventy-nine witnesses appeared before the Commission and statements were filed on behalf of one hundred and fifty-five additional witnesses. On February 28, 1962, the Commission filed its final report, recommending substantial changes in many of the railroad's work rules. It agreed with the carriers' position that 40,000 firemen helpers who served on freight trains were no longer needed. It also recommended that the railroads "should have an unlimited right to technological change."