Update on the East Palestine Train Derailment

by Addison Caruso, Esq. - Staff Attorney at Fair Shake ELS

Much has happened in the East Palestine community in the past year and a half since the Norfolk Southern train derailment – lawsuits have been filed, government investigations were carried out, and laws were proposed in response.    Many nonprofit organizations, including Fair Shake, have worked to help the community deal with the accident and the collective response.  As a nonprofit law firm, Fair Shake’s primary goal in reaction to the derailment has been to educate the community on the legal response.  We’ve done this by helping to hold free legal clinics for community members, by providing advice to responding organizations, and by giving general legal education about the accident.   In keeping with Fair Shake’s legal education goals and given the scope of the response to date, we believe that a general update on the derailment is in order.  As such, here is where things stand as of August 2, 2024:

Summary

Around 9:00 pm on February 3, 2023, a Norfolk Southern freight train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio.[1] Of the 150 train cars, 50 were affected by the derailment, with the rest being uncoupled and removed from the scene.[2] Approximately twenty of those derailed cars contained hazardous materials, such as vinyl chloride.[3] Following the derailment, acting on information from Norfolk Southern and its contractors that a dangerous chemical reaction was occurring within a vinyl chloride train car, the incident commander managing the response made a decision to vent and burn the tanks obtaining vinyl chloride.[4] It is still unclear what lasting health effects this decision had on the surrounding community, but following the derailment, residents have reported a wide variety of health symptoms such as eye irritation, skin lesions, brain fog, and raised concerns about cancer.[5] Following the derailment, studies were undertaken surrounding the accident, legislation was proposed to prevent similar derailments from occurring in the future, and lawsuits were filed by both individuals and the federal/state governments against Norfolk Southern. Updates on each of these responses to the derailment are detailed below.

National Transportation Safety Board Investigation

Following the derailment, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)  conducted an investigation into Norfolk Southern’s conduct that specifically focused on: (1) communications about hazards and emergency responder preparedness for the initial response to the derailment; (2) circumstances that led to the decision to vent and burn the five vinyl chloride tank cars; (3) the types or patterns of freight car wheel bearing failure, such as overheating, wear, or material defects, and failures of the wayside detection systems; and (4) tank car derailment damage, crashworthiness, and hazardous materials package information.[6] During this investigation, NTSB staff spoke with representatives from Norfolk Southern, held investigative hearings, and reviewed various reports published during and after the vent burning.[7]

As of July 5, 2024, the NTSB has not published its final report but has released an abstract of the report.[8] One of the more notable findings from the report is that the venting and burning of the five train cars carrying the toxic chemical vinyl chloride, which occurred three days after the derailment, was unnecessary and released 115,000 gallons of vinyl chloride into the environment.[9] They concluded that the decision to vent and burn rather than pursue alternative methods was “based on incomplete and misleading information provided by Norfolk Southern” and that they withheld critical data and context about the state of the train cars from the governor of Ohio and first responders.[10] Furthermore, Jennifer Homendy, the NTSB chair, said that Norfolk Southern “demonstrated complete disregard” for the rules and regulations put in place to protect the integrity of the investigation and described the company’s behavior as “unprecedented, reprehensive, unethical and inappropriate.”[11]  As of August 2, 2024,  the final report has not yet been published but should be in the next few weeks.[12]

Department of Justice and Ohio Attorney General Lawsuits

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit against Norfolk Southern (Case No. 4:23CV00675) along with the Ohio Attorney General’s (AG) office (Case No. 4:23CV00517). Both cases were consolidated under the AG’s case in the Northern District of Ohio.

Department of Justice Lawsuit: On May 23, 2024, the DOJ and EPA announced a settlement valued at over $310 million with Norfolk Southern.[13] In the settlement, Norfolk Southern agreed to address and pay for the damage caused by the February 3, 2023, train derailment.[14] The settlement, subject to court approval, requires Norfolk Southern to pay a $15 million civil penalty, improve rail safety, pay for health monitoring and mental health services for the surrounding communities, and fund long-term environmental monitoring.[15]Specifically, Norfolk Southern has agreed to:[16]

·      Spend $235 million for all past and future cleanup costs;

·      Pay $25 million for a 20-year community health program;

·      Pay $15 million to implement a long-term monitoring of groundwater and surface water;

·      Pay $15 million for a private drinking water monitoring fund;

·      Implement a waterways remediation plan with an estimated budget of $6 million in Leslie Run and Sulfur Run to address historical pollution and reduce non-point source pollution through infrastructure upgrades and stormwater management; and

·      Pay $175,000 for natural resource damages to be used by the United States to restore, rehabilitate, replace, or acquire the natural resources injured because of the derailment.[17]

Additionally, the consent decree requires Norfolk Southern to work on projects that will improve the safety of transporting hazardous materials by rail, which includes the installation of additional devices to detect overheated wheel bearings early enough to prevent derailment.[18] These enhancements are estimated to cost Norfolk Southern approximately $200 million.

Following the settlement, the DOJ set aside time to answer the public’s questions about the proposed settlement on July 15 and 16 at the EPA Welcome Center in East Palestine located at 25 N. Market St., East Palestine, OH 44413.[19] The EPA also allowed members of the public to comment on the settlement up until August 2, 2024.[20] The DOJ will read all the comments it receives and consider whether any changes to the settlement are necessary, and tell the Court why it decides to make a change, or not, based on the comments.[21] The full settlement is available here.

Ohio Attorney General Lawsuit: On May 23, 2024, the Ohio Attorney General announced, shortly after the DOJ and EPA announcement, that they would not be participating in the settlement out of concerns that it could undercompensate the residents of East Palestine and wanted to allow the NTSB to complete its investigation into the circumstances leading up to the derailment and the decision-making process which resulted in the “vent and burn” of the derailed tanker cars.[22] Recently, on June 15, 2024, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost held a community discussion in East Palestine to provide updates on the case and discuss next steps.[23]Specifically, the discussion was meant to “gauge the public’s reaction to the U.S. government’s settlement, direct whether or not Ohio will object to it in court and to help steer any negotiation the state may have with the railroad concerning its own lawsuits.”[24] He reiterated that Ohio “isn’t interested in settling” and that one of his priorities was to get Norfolk Southern to agree to create a health fund for the community.[25] It is unclear whether a settlement between Norfolk Southern and the state of Ohio will occur in the near future.

Class Action Lawsuits: Following the derailment, numerous class action lawsuits were filed against Norfolk Southern on behalf of individuals in the East Palestine community. They were consolidated under theFeezle lawsuit (Case No. 4:23CV0242) in the Northern District of Ohio. On April 9, 2024, Norfolk Southern and the attorneys representing the class actions suits agreed to a Settlement where Norfolk Southern would pay $600 million in total to residents and their attorneys.[26]  Approximately 190,000 households are entitled to the funds along with 15,000 businesses.[27] The households that were closest to the derailment site will likely receive about $70,000, but payments will vary depending on family size, extent of property damage, whether a resident was permanently relocated, etc.[28] The amount a family receives will also depend on whether they have received any previous payments from Norfolk Southern.[29]

This Settlement, if approved by the court, would resolve all class action claims within a 20-mile radius from the derailment and resolve personal injury claims for all individuals within 10-miles of the derailment.[30] The Settlement does not include or constitute any admission of liability, wrongdoing, or fault.[31] Individuals in East Palestine must have filed a request for an exclusion from the settlement or objected to its terms by July 1, 2024.[32] To receive money under the Settlement, an individual must submit a claim by August 22, 2024.[33] If the Settlement applies to you, you can submit an individual claim here. If an individual does not submit a claim, or file an exclusion or objection to the settlement, they will not receive any benefits from the Settlement and will be bound by the terms of the Settlement.[34] They will not, however, give up any past, present, or future personal injury claims.[35] On September 25, 2024, a hearing will be in court held to determine if the Settlement is a fair, reasonable, and adequate resolution, and, if it is determined to be so, the Settlement will be finalized.[36] More information about the Settlement can be found here: https://www.eastpalestinetrainsettlement.com/.

Federal Legislation: Introduced in March 2023, less than a month after the derailment, Senators Brown (D-OH), Vance (R-OH), Fetterman (D-PA), Casey (D-PA), Rubio (R-FL), and Hawley (R-MO),  introduced in the Senate the Railway Safety Act (S.576).[37] This bill, if passed, would increase safety requirements for all rail carriers and trains transporting hazardous materials, like the train that passed through East Palestine.[38] Specifically, it would require that all rail carriers or shippers that carry hazardous materials:[39]

·      Provide state emergency response commissioners with advanced notice and information about the hazardous materials;

·      Reduce blocked rail crossings; and

·      Require railway companies to comply with certain requirements regarding train length and weight specifications, track standards, speed restrictions, and response plans.

The bill also establishes requirements for wayside defect detectors, which detect defects and failures along the tracks, such as wheel bearing failures, while increasing fines for noncompliance with safety regulations.[40]Additionally, the bill increases Department of Transportation rail car inspection regulations, requires a minimum two-person crew for certain freight trains, and provides funding for research and development to improve railway safety, among other provisions.[41] The bill has been referred to out of its Senate committee but as of August 2, 2024, the Senate has not held a full vote on the bill because it likely does not have the sixty votes needed to overcome a Senate filibuster.[42]

[1] https://www.epa.gov/east-palestine-oh-train-derailment/background

[2] https://www.epa.gov/east-palestine-oh-train-derailment/background

[3] https://www.epa.gov/east-palestine-oh-train-derailment/background

[4]https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/Documents/East%20Palestine%20Ohio%20Board%20Meeting%20Summary%20with%20Amendments.pdf (page 1)

[5] https://www.cbsnews.com/news/east-palestine-ohio-train-derailment-residents-health-issues-norfolk-southern/

[6] https://www.ntsb.gov/news/events/Pages/East-Palestine-Hearing-Event.aspx

[7] https://insideclimatenews.org/news/27062024/norfolk-southern-east-palestine-derailment-ntsb-investigation/; https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/?NTSBNumber=RRD23MR005

[8] https://www.ntsb.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/NR20240625.aspx

[9] https://insideclimatenews.org/news/27062024/norfolk-southern-east-palestine-derailment-ntsb-investigation/

[10] https://insideclimatenews.org/news/27062024/norfolk-southern-east-palestine-derailment-ntsb-investigation/

[11] https://insideclimatenews.org/news/27062024/norfolk-southern-east-palestine-derailment-ntsb-investigation/

[12] https://www.ntsb.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/NR20240625.aspx

[13] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/united-states-reaches-over-310-million-settlement-norfolk-southern-address-harms-caused-east

[14] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/united-states-reaches-over-310-million-settlement-norfolk-southern-address-harms-caused-east

[15] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/united-states-reaches-over-310-million-settlement-norfolk-southern-address-harms-caused-east

[16] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/united-states-reaches-over-310-million-settlement-norfolk-southern-address-harms-caused-east

[17] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/united-states-reaches-over-310-million-settlement-norfolk-southern-address-harms-caused-east

[18] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/united-states-reaches-over-310-million-settlement-norfolk-southern-address-harms-caused-east

[19] https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2024-07/env-enforcement-3764639-v3-east-palestine-fact-sheet-final_7-8.pdf (page 1).

[20] https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2024-07/env-enforcement-3764639-v3-east-palestine-fact-sheet-final_7-8.pdf (page 1).

[21] https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2024-07/env-enforcement-3764639-v3-east-palestine-fact-sheet-final_7-8.pdf

[22] https://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/Media/News-Releases/May-2024/Senator-Vance-and-Attorney-General-Yost-React-to-E

[23] https://www.morningjournalnews.com/news/local-news/2024/06/ohio-attorney-general-hears-from-east-palestine-residents/

[24] https://www.morningjournalnews.com/news/local-news/2024/06/ohio-attorney-general-hears-from-east-palestine-residents/

[25] https://www.morningjournalnews.com/news/local-news/2024/06/ohio-attorney-general-hears-from-east-palestine-residents/

[26] https://www.eastpalestinetrainsettlement.com/files/Settlement_Agreement_5dfe847545.pdf (page 3)

[27] https://www.post-gazette.com/local/region/2024/06/30/east-palestine-settlement-train-derailment-ntsb/stories/202406280119

[28] https://www.post-gazette.com/local/region/2024/06/30/east-palestine-settlement-train-derailment-ntsb/stories/202406280119

[29] https://www.eastpalestinetrainsettlement.com/files/Settlement_Agreement_5dfe847545.pdf (page 22)

[30] https://www.eastpalestinetrainsettlement.com/files/Settlement_Agreement_5dfe847545.pdf (pages 28–29).

[31] https://www.eastpalestinetrainsettlement.com/files/Settlement_Agreement_5dfe847545.pdf (page 30).

[32] https://www.eastpalestinetrainsettlement.com/

[33] https://www.eastpalestinetrainsettlement.com/

[34] https://www.eastpalestinetrainsettlement.com/files/Settlement_Agreement_5dfe847545.pdf (exhibit D page 6)

[35] https://www.eastpalestinetrainsettlement.com/files/Settlement_Agreement_5dfe847545.pdf (page 29).

[36] https://www.post-gazette.com/local/region/2024/06/30/east-palestine-settlement-train-derailment-ntsb/stories/202406280119

[37] https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/576

[38] https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/576

[39] https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/576

[40] https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/576

[41] https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/576

[42] https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/576/all-actions

Fair Shake's Earth Day Highlights

We hope everyone found a meaningful way to celebrate Earth Day, whether by planting trees, participating in a community actions, or simply spending time appreciating the beauty of nature. Our team marked the occasion by planting pollinator gardens, launching a little seed library in their neighborhood, and talking to their children about power and decision-making in our local governance.

Get to know a little bit about our team below & let's continue to prioritize environmental stewardship every day, ensuring a healthier planet for future generations.

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KYLA WALKER, COMMUNITY DEMOCRACY PROGRAM INTERN  

On Earth Day, considering that it was the Monday of my finals week, I started my day by studying for my first final at noon, and then tried my very best to spend my day outside after that! With it being the start of my finals, I spent the bulk of the day studying as I have two more finals within the week and a paper to write. I find that I work best when I’m alone getting work done outside; there’s just something about being outside that calms me and allows me to work efficiently. My favorite spot is outside the Frick Fine Arts building where there is a big fountain that gets hit so perfectly by the sun. One fun thing I did though, was visit my roommate while she is working at the University of Pittsburgh’s thrift store called, Thriftsburgh! I plan to donate some clothes that I have been meaning to get rid of too! Happy Earth Day! 

JUSTIN TUMINELLO, COMMUNITY DEMOCRACY PROGRAM INTERN 

To celebrate Earth Day, I planted a pollinator garden with the new Conservation Club at Pitt! Working with Facilities Management, we designed and planted this plot including native and pollinator-friendly plants including false sunflower, wild indigo, butterfly weed, wild bergamot, autumn sedum, and red twig dogwood. These plants will support pollinators like mason bees and improve the ecological health of Pitt’s campus. We are also attending a Playground Build and Earth Day Celebration at the Mulford Community Teaching Garden to help prepare for the upcoming growing season. Throughout the week, I walked my dog around Schenley Park, went biking with friends, and made sure to water my houseplants too! 

CHRISTY CHOO, COMMUNITY DEMOCRACY PROGRAM INTERN  

To celebrate Earth Day, I took a long walk after my meetings and classes are over. I live in Philadelphia and one of my favorite places to walk is along the Schuylkill River Trail, which features lovely views of the city and surrounding neighborhoods. I love to take some time to walk around and explore the city and find it a great way to wind down and breathe. I also participated in a university-wide Earth Week tabling event where I helped provide plants and pots for students to paint!  

BROOKE CHRISTY, EQUAL JUSTICE WORKS FELLOW 

For me, Earth Day is a time for reflecting on how I am impacting my environment and consciously taking action to make it a better place to live. My friend, DeSawn, hosted a community clean-up from Hazelwood Cafe—so of course, I joined with my partner and puppy! I also bought a pound of native wildflower seeds to start a “Little Seed Library” in my neighborhood. I hope that it can bring local gardeners together and encourage new gardeners to find ways to incorporate native pollinators into spaces. I successfully packaged and labeled all the seeds but building the library without blueprints has not been as easy—although it should be done next weekend!  

MEAGAN NIEBLER, COMMUNITY DEMOCRACY PROGRAM MANAGER 

I’m excited to spend Earth Day with my family.  My community does a Community Earth Day Festival each year with a combination of environmental nonprofits, kids activities, local farmers, and some other events and activities.  We went to this event, as I love it as a time to build community and keep meeting others in my neighborhood who care about environmental justice.   

We’ve also been playing Earth Day Bingo!  It’s sparked some great conversations between myself and my 5 and 8 year olds.   

Lastly, we are talking with our kids about elections and voting. They will vote in the upcoming primary with us, and we talk a lot about power and decision-making, and the importance of finding candidates and others who share your values.  Three of our favorite books to read with our kids about these topics are:  Sophia Valdez, Future Prez by Andrea Beaty, The President of the Jungle by Andre Rodrigues, and Grace for President by Kelly DiPucchio.

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While Earth Day was April 22nd, it is never too late to find ways to celebrate environmental stewardship! Check out Fair Shake’s Earth Day Bingo cards for family fun activities. Message us on social media to let us know you have completed your Bingo Card by May 1st to be entered into a raffle for prizes!

Community Benefits Agreements: Now That They’re Here, What Do They Mean?

How Did We Get Here?

Community Benefit Agreements are beginning to be far more common than ever before. But what are Community Benefit Agreements? And why have they become more popular now? To answer these questions, we should look back on their not-so-distant origin to see how we got here.

Back in the late 1990s, Los Angeles began to see an increased presence of unions across the city and around wider California. This growth brought labor unions to a head against several major-scale development projects, namely the development of the LA Staples Center. The building of this arena had a significant impact on the community surrounding its site, displacing 200 households of a predominantly low-income Latino neighborhood, and resulting in a measured increase in traffic, pollution, parking problems, and crime. During Phase II of the project, the community banded together to ensure that those problems would be addressed through the remaining development. What followed was one of the most successful ever cases of establishing a Community Benefit Agreement.

            Now in 2024, Community Benefit Agreements (CBAs) are becoming increasingly more common across the country. But why has this relatively new practice begun to see such a quick rise to widespread use? And what benefits do they provide to justify this new found support not just from unions, but even corporate interests and the federal government?

            Let’s start simply but defining what exactly a CBA is. As defined by the Department of Energy (DoE), a Community Benefits Agreement is the result of negotiations between a developer proposing a particular land use and a coalition of community organizations that claims to represent the individuals and groups affected by the proposed development. In the simplest of terms, it is a contract that outlines the mutual interests of both sides of the negotiation and how those mutual interests are to be accomplished as the development comes to fruition. While simple on its face, the value of a CBA comes from the benefits it provides to both parties, often resulting in a more mutually beneficial arrangement overall. The developer usually agrees to provide some amenities for the community. In return, the community agrees to support, and perhaps more importantly to not oppose, any further applications the developer needs.

In recent years, the DoE has encouraged their use in the more developing energy sectors, such as solar or wind farms, and has outlined several common benefits to both developers and community members. Specifically, the DoE claims that having the community support offered by a CBA reduces risk for developers and encourages cooperation throughout a project’s life cycle. This can take the form of public subsidies or even the more reliable procurement of government approval. Simultaneously, community members can be offered guaranteed job formation and can verify the implementation of more local and diverse hiring commitments, as well as established living wages. These benefits often take the form of community-wide additions, supporting or encouraging the use of educational partnerships, support to local small businesses or providers, and investment into community spaces, either with local gardens and parks or to encourage affordable housing initiatives. These lists only showcase a few of the advantages a CBA can offer to a community.

Why It Matters

            On the surface, the increased frequency of these agreements appears beneficial. Their use is encouraged to provide transparency and commitment between two vast parties, oftentimes predicted to have benefits that last decades as the community and developers’ individual means fully come to fruition. In this way, the increase in their usage should be viewed optimistically given what end goals they seem to encourage.

            However, the reality of their use on a case-by-case basis is often hazier. Like any contract, a CBA can be weak or non-binding if not properly implemented. This means, whether intentionally or not, the years of work constructing or pushing for the use of a CBA can be wasted if the parties do not properly draft the agreement, typically leaving the affected community the ones worse for wear. These risks are not insignificant given that businesses are not usually required to formally engage in these types of negotiations. This can mean that a community that pushes hard for a CBA against a party that is not interested can waste a lot of time and finances. This is where the more social aspects of a CBA come into play, and why governments and nonprofits should continue to encourage their usage, even if implementation is challenging.

            A recent poll conducted by the group Data For Progress found that CBAs are overwhelmingly popular, finding that 59% of likely voters support the use of CBAs on development projects. These metrics even hold consistently on a partisan basis with Democrats shown to be 61% in favor, Republicans 63%, and independents holding around 53% in favor. The data referred to above can be found here. This level of popularity, found with most of the voting population, showcases one of the most important aspects of CBAs: social value. While hard to individually calculate, social value has a near-universal benefit to all parties involved in the CBA discussion. Not only does positive public perception often help or encourage the support of newly developed projects or businesses, but it often directly impacts the public value derived from the project. This can take the form of job and job loyalty, individual pride in the impacts of a project or group, and even just positive public perception, often resulting in fewer hurdles and fights over public outcry and discontentedness. These metrics are harder to formally captivate in a study but showcase the values of CBAs and why we should view their increased frequency of their usage in the past several decades s a  positive trend.

            Additionally, CBAs offer a platform for developers or groups to naturally accommodate policy or legislative requirements. For example, the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 was intended to help reduce redlining via banks and came out of the civil rights era of legislation. By using a CBA between a bank and an affected community, terms can be openly arranged and discussed amongst community members to ensure transparency and sustainable conditions, while also allowing the bank to meet its requirements under the Community Reinvestment Act.

How It’s Done

While each CBA is different by design, how they should be approached has thankfully become more formulaic as time has gone on. However, the conditions and goals of a CBA will vary wildly based on who is encouraging and seeking out the agreement. That being said, there are several trends to try to align with when establishing a CBA to make it fair and enforceable:

●       Negotiations should begin before a project developer has secured a land-use agreement with the government. A community can begin to be affected at the very beginning of a project’s life cycle. Establishing the expectations of both parties at the outset will result in the highest probability of success.

●       All community groups involved in the CBA drafting process and negotiations must communicate internally and with the community at large. When covering the interests of an entire community, it is important that all voices are readily available and can be heard. Having regular meetings or communications will help the core groups to inform the larger community about the progress of CBA negotiations, accept feedback, and allow room to address new issues that arise. If the scale of this communication becomes too large for a given community, organizations can be brought in with a specialty in CBAs to help keep parties organized.

●       Drafters should be targeting the benefits of the CBA to marginalized communities or those most affected by the development project. CBAs offer a prime opportunity to encourage restorative justice and to ensure the quality of life of marginalized groups does not come at the expense of project progress.

●       A successful CBA should be as widely encompassing as possible. Oftentimes the parties who have organized the community come from labor unions, environmental groups, faith organizations, and even local businesses. As a result, one must bear in mind that these disparate groups have a wide array of interests they are seeking to protect. Negotiators must be careful not to prioritize one of these at the expense of others.

●       While it may sound obvious, a CBA must offer a meaningful benefit to the community that it is targeted towards. A town with a noticeably low population may not need a developer to invest in 5 parks and may instead have a greater need for investment in its local education. While a CBA may lead to governmental and financial support for the developers, for a CBA to be meaningful negotiators must build it around the community it seeks to affect.

●       The goal of a CBA is to create an enforceable contract that binds the parties to their promised actions. Thus, a CBA needs to be both legally binding and enforceable, detailing how the measures enclosed are to be accomplished and pursued over the lifespan of the project. Specificity is key here and will allow the parties involved to hold each other accountable as investments continue to develop.

●       Finally, keeping community members informed of the development of negotiations allows for an increase in community morale and to incentivize involvement from the group. Oftentimes these negotiations can be time-consuming, so allowing all parties to be aware of progress and where certain bottlenecks might occur will help foster engagement.

While CBAs are still a relatively new phenomenon, this should not be viewed as a blemish on what they represent. While new in the legal world, they offer no shortage of opportunities for communities to bargain for their shared values and wellbeing.