Rail yards of both passenger and freight carriers are riddled with hazards for workers.

From debris, to crumbling walkways, to poorly lit bridges and outmoded tools, rail workers face dangers everyday. Here are the photos to prove it. Seem familiar?

Yet the only thing that makes the news is when the lives of passengers are threatened, like in the Valhalla crossing accident. Of course the safety of passengers and pedestrians is critical.

But the workers?

Their safety and rights aren't even a part of the story.

Employees contact me all the time with questions about their rights, the answers to which I thought were common knowlege,  like, Can my boss come into my hospital room?. Or will the railroad pay for my injury if it's my fault?

Besides answering their questions individually, which I'm happy to do, there wasn’t one place to look for the answers to these questions so I wrote this list, The 10 Rights of Railroad Workers

I hope it will arm you if and when you are caught in a dangerous situation on the job.