FELA

FELA
 by: Wensley McKenney

Global Financial Credit, LLC (http://www.glofin.com) (866) 709-1100 is a specialty finance company which aims to provide financial strength to all working families & level the playing field with the corridors of power at America’s largest corporations. To provide low cost financing to injured workers who may not have the assets or current income to obtain funding from traditional banks & credit unions. To help build better lives for working families of those who have been injured on the job by providing the necessary financing to get them there.

UTU & BLE Union members and their designated counsel have been facing a problem with regards to injured railway workers and the protection they are entitled to. These union members are covered by the Federal Employee Liability Act or FELA which protects them due to their dangerous occupation, however, in recent years the large Railroad companies have been using sly tactics to try and show that on the job injuries are declining and that the FELA should be repealed. They are offering Maintenance Income or Maintenance Wages if an employee who is claiming to be injured does not hire an attorney to represent him/her in a FELA claim. The railroads have even been known to try to influence doctors in how they treat injured railway workers in an effort to reduce the number and severity of reported injuries.

The conditions that railroad workers face each day is deteriorating at a rapid pace. Old tracks and switches that have not been updated for decades are being ignored until there is a major injury or death caused. It seems that the railroad companies believe this is the most cost effective way of dealing with the maintenance of their equipment which is at the cost of the health of the very employees that run their trains.

Pressure should be put on the railroad companies at the highest level and all railroad workers. It is important that the members of the UTU and BLE unite together in this common effort to make the railway a safer place to work. These unions have not typically worked together, however, this is a common cause that affects each organization and its’ members alike and should be addressed in unity.

The National Association of Railroad Passengers (http://www.narpail.org) is responsible for investigating major accidents. Train accidents have been occurring ever since trains have been running.

OUR VIEW OF THE CURRENT FELA SITUATION

Our own view of the Federal Employee Liability Act (FELA), as it relates to Union Railroad workers, is that something must be done now to stop the major railroad companies from convincing the United States Federal Government that railroad workers are much safer today and that the FELA should be abolished. Their lobbying efforts and financial tactics of advancing wages to injured workers are having a real affect on the future of FELA and the protection it brings to BLE members and UTU members (http://www.ble.org, http://www.utu.org) . They are making the argument to the government that railroad injury claims are steadily declining and that this is a direct correlation to a safer working environment for its railroad workers. This is not true and the only statistics we believe to be true are that injuries remain steady amongst railroad workers while injury claims have declined since the railroad companies began offering maintenance income to injured workers.

At Global Financial Credit, LLC (“GLOBAL”), we believe all workers need access to affordable financing so they can make their own choice about whether to report an injury or not. Union workers should not be forced into letting short term financial requirements determine the choices for their future and that of their family. Our Maintenance Income financial products are designed to provide low cost financing to injured workers so they can make their own choices without influence from their employers.

THE PROTECTION OF FELA

Since 1908 the Federal Employee Liability Act (FELA) has protected railway workers from the dangerous job they face every day. In concept the FELA is very similar to both the Jones Act and the Labor Laws in each state. This law protects injured railway workers in the same fashion as the Jones Act. If a railroad worker is injured on the job then their injury is not subject to worker compensation laws but rather to FELA. The FELA allows injured railway workers who may be members of the BLE (http://www.ble.org) or UTU (http://www.utu.org) to sue their employer for lost wages, future lost wages and pain & suffering. The FELA dates back to the early 1908 when the average life of a railroader was only 9 years. The railroad conglomerates have been lobbying the United States congress to repeal the FELA which shows very little simpathy to the hard working BLE & UTU Union members who risk their lives every day so the people of our country can receive the transported goods which must travel by railway. When workers are injured they may have some type of disability insurance or they may apply for a lawsuit loan cash advance from companies that offer low rates on FELA cases. Global Financial (http://www.glofin.com) is one such company that offers low cost cash advance on pending FELA claims.

Litigation Funding is a new industry which will grow substantially so that the under-financed plaintiffs of this country can stand up to the deep pocketed defendants and receive the settlement they deserve from the injuries they sustained by the negligent acts of another. Global Financial has become a specialist in the field of providing litigation loans.

EXPERIENCE & FINANCIAL STRENGTH

Our team brings to BLE and UTU Union Members and their families the unlimited financial resources needed to achieve a truly fair settlement or judgment from their FELA claim. GLOBAL is not capital constrained and does not have to raise money every time a case is funded.

GLOBAL’s infrastructure was designed to fund more than 5,000 advances per month totaling over $20,000,000. Our experience from evaluating more than 23,000 personal injury, FELA & Jones Act cases in the past 5 years qualifies us to serve Union Workers by quickly evaluating their claims and approving them for financing within hours of their application.

WHAT GLOBAL CAN PROVIDE

GLOBAL can provide the following to Union Worker’s sanctioned under the division of the IBT Conference that have hired a designated union attorney and have a pending FELA claim.

1. Standard Maintenance Income equal to that offered by railroad
2. No taxes deducted from income so more money into their pocket.
3. Our lowest fees ever offered (see below)
4. Direct Deposit available
5. GLOBAL plays no role in the FELA claim itself.
6. Designated Toll Free number for Union Worker applications.
7. If the case is lost then the Union Worker keeps the money and has not obligation to re pay it. It is not debt. It is only repayable if the case is successful.
8. Financial independence to see their FELA case through.
9. Security knowing that repayment is contingent upon a successful resolution in the FELA claim.

MAINTENANCE WAGE RATES

GLOBAL offers and exclusive, low rate to BLE & UTU Union Workers in exchange for a portion of the FELA settlement amount. Following a train accident or train wreck the Railway Companies offer Maintenance Wages to BLE & UTU members if the member does not hire counsel to represent them. These members can now report the injury and get Maintenance Wages from Global while they are waiting for their settlement. The rates would be as follows and applies to:

1. BLE & UTU Union Workers - 1.99% per month
2. ARLA Member rates - 2.99% per month
3. GLOBAL standard rates for non members - 3.99% per month

All Fees and the repayment of principle are contingent upon the successful resolution of the FELA claim. If the case is lost then we lose all of our money and so our Fees must reflect this risk. This level of risk is not acceptable to conservative banks or credit unions, which is why they are not in our business.