KANSAS CITY - The Union Pacific Railroad Company was recently brought to federal court for allegedly violating the Federal Railway Safety Act.
A complaint was filed on May 13 in the U.S. District Court for Western Missouri by plaintiff Brad Haynes of White Cloud, Kan.
Haynes was employed by UP as a welder. He applied for and believed he was going to receive a promotion into the position of a railcar inspector. Haynes says he told the defendant that he was willing to relocate to live closer to the job sites where he was going to work.
Meanwhile, Haynes also reported UP to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) for allegedly forcing employees to keep defective railcars in commission in violation of FRA regulations.
Haynes was not awarded the promotion after he had made the reports and was told that he was not promoted because he lived too far away from the job sites, despite Haynes telling UP that he was willing to relocate, the lawsuit says.
The plaintiff believes and alleges that UP retaliated against his reports to the FRA by not promoting him.
Haynes is represented by Groves Powers LLC of St. Louis in his request for damages.