Vol. 80/No. 19 May 16, 2016
Framed-up Quebec rail workers gain union support
AND JOHN STEELE
Harding, a locomotive engineer, and Labrie, a train controller, are members of United Steelworkers Local 1976. They, along with former Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway official Jean Demaitre, are charged by the Quebec Crown Prosecutor with criminal negligence causing death for the July 6, 2013, derailment and explosion of an oil train in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec. If convicted they could face life in prison.
The train was operated by a one-person crew — Harding — under special dispensation provided by the Canadian government for the rail bosses.
The night of the explosion, Harding parked the train after his 12-hour shift, activated the locomotive air brakes, set hand brakes on seven tanker cars, and left to get some sleep. A fire broke out that night on the engine. Volunteer firefighters turned off the engine when they put it out. The company sent out a track manager, who was not knowledgeable about locomotives and didn’t start another engine. This caused the air brakes to bleed out and the train rolled down into Lac-Mégantic, crashed and exploded, killing 47 people.
“The Executive Board and Membership of USW Local 10-234, Oil Refinery Workers in Trainer, Pennsylvania, would like to extend our support and Solidarity in your battle against Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway,” said local president Jonas Dauber in a letter sent to Steelworkers Local 1976 in Montreal April 11, along with a $500 contribution to the defense effort. “Too many times do our brothers and sisters in the workplace have blame placed on them by Companies that cut spending, decrease manpower and increase work-load. Those decisions have a great impact on the safety of workers, the community and the environment.”
USW Local 10-1, which organizes workers at the Philadelphia Energy Solutions refinery, also contributed $500 to fight the frame-up. “It was the right thing to do,” Matt Tankelewicz, a crude distillation unit operator there, told the Militant. “These two guys are being scapegoated for a systemic problem.”
From Lincoln, Nebraska, United Steelworkers Local 286 President Hugh Bowen wrote, “All union members, workers, and supporters of democratic rights in the U.S., Canada and beyond have a stake in the fight to defeat the efforts of the Canadian government and railroad employers to frame Harding and Labrie.” That local sent $100 toward the defense efforts.
Harding’s attorney, Thomas Walsh, spoke about the case to students at the University of Quebec in Montreal April 7, along with Fritz Edler, a retired Amtrak engineer from Washington, D.C. who is active in Railroad Workers United. “For the MMA, the accent was on profit, the bottom line,” Walsh said. “They ran their trains with one-person crews, a badly wired backup safety system and instructions not to use the automatic braking system which could have prevented the disaster.”
Walsh also attended the convention of Railroad Workers United, a U.S.-based inter-union group of rail activists, held in Chicago March 31-April 1.
“Now is a critical time to draw together support from union members and supporters of democratic rights,” said Walsh in an address to the morning session on the second day of the gathering.
Solidarity messages for the Tom Harding and Richard Labrie defense should be sent to their union, USW 1976 / Section locale 1976, 2360 De Lasalle, Suite 202, Montreal, QC H1V 2L1. Email: info@1976usw.ca
Copies should be sent to: Thomas Walsh, 165 Rue Wellington N. Suite 310, Sherbrooke, QC Canada J1H 5B9. Email: thomaspwalsh@hotmail.com.
Contributions can be sent in Canada to Syndicat des Métallos, 565, boulevard Crémazie Est, bureau 5100, Montreal, QC H2M 2V8. In the U.S. send checks to Tom Harding Defense Fund, First Niagara Bank, 25 McClellan Drive, Nassau, NY 12123.
Joe Swanson in Lincoln, Nebraska, contributed to this article.
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