The Federal Employers’ Liability Act, commonly known as FELA, is the federal law that gives railroad employees the right to file a lawsuit when they are injured on the job. Unlike state workers’ compensation systems, FELA allows injured rail workers to bring a negligence claim directly against their employer and have a jury decide the case. Workers’ compensation caps benefits […]

Virginia is railroad country. Norfolk Southern has been based in Norfolk for decades. CSX Transportation, which grew out of the old Atlantic Coast Line and Seaboard railroads, is still a Virginia corporation, even though its operations are now run from Jacksonville. Amtrak routes crisscross the state, with principal offices just across the northern Virginia border in Washington, D.C. The result […]

When most people get hurt on the job in this country, they file a workers’ compensation claim. The system is straightforward, more or less. The worker gets medical care and a portion of their lost wages, the employer’s insurance pays the bill, and the question of who was at fault rarely comes up. It isn’t perfect, but it works for […]

For decades, the question of how many people belong in a locomotive cab has been one of the most contested issues in the railroad industry. Workers and unions have argued that two crew members are essential for safe operations. Railroad companies have pushed in the other direction, citing automation, technology, and cost savings as reasons to operate with a single […]

Railroad work is dangerous, and injuries happen fast. In the chaos that follows a workplace accident, filing an incident report isn’t always the first thing on a hurt worker’s mind. Sometimes the injury doesn’t seem serious at the moment. Sometimes a supervisor brushes it off. Sometimes the pain doesn’t really set in until hours or days later, after the shift […]

Railroad work is genuinely dangerous. Tracks, heavy equipment, moving trains, long shifts, and exposure to diesel fumes and toxic chemicals are all part of the job for many workers. When something goes wrong and a railroad employee gets hurt, the path to compensation looks nothing like what most workers in other industries experience. There is no state workers’ compensation system […]

Railroad yard work is demanding, physical, and genuinely dangerous. Switching and coupling accidents happen in seconds, and the injuries they cause, from broken bones to spinal trauma, can alter the course of your life. If you’ve been hurt on the job, the steps you take in the hours and days that follow matter more than most people realize. Your Rights […]

Railroad work is hard on the body. Years of heavy lifting, repetitive motion, exposure to vibration, and physical strain add up. Most railroad workers who file FELA claims have some history of prior injuries or conditions, and insurance adjusters know it. They’ll use that history against you if they can. But a pre-existing condition doesn’t mean you lose your case. […]

When a jury awards an injured railroad worker millions of dollars, that’s not always the end of the story. Not by a long shot. Railroads have deep pockets, experienced legal teams, and a well-practiced playbook for challenging verdicts they don’t like. One example involved Norfolk Southern’s defense attorneys seeking a new trial after a West Virginia jury awarded an injured […]

Most workers who get hurt on the job think about workers’ compensation first. File a claim, get your medical bills covered, receive a portion of your lost wages, and move forward. It’s a no-fault system — straightforward, if limited. Railroad workers don’t have that system. Instead, they’re covered by the Federal Employers Liability Act, or FELA, a federal law enacted […]