The Academy of Rail Labor Attorneys (ARLA) is a trial lawyer group whose primary purpose is to improve the conditions of railroad workers and promote the common interest and concerns of attorneys representing injured railroad employees. The group was formed in 1989 and James Vucinovich, partner at Rossi Vucinovich PC, served as ARLA president from 2016-2017. In response to recent events across our nation involving race relations and ethnicity, the group recently issued a “Position Statement on Racial and Economic Equality.”

What Does the Statement Provide?

The ARLA uses its statement to join millions of others in “condemning racial and economic inequality that persists in our country today.”

According to the statement:

“For over 31 years ARLA has partnered with Rail Labor Organizations to represent and defend injured union workers of all crafts, races, creeds, and genders.  We will continue to aggressively represent our union brothers and sisters and treat every person with dignity and respect, the very foundation upon which the labor movement was built.”

While reaffirming its commitment to railroad employees, the statement goes on to address and respond to current race and ethnic relations in the U.S. In part, the statement provides:

“We must act. What we are seeing on the streets now is not just the response to the murder of George Floyd and others, but the ramification of an unbalanced society built on an inherently racist understructure. We have to be honest about this country’s real history.

Apathy is not an option for our organization and its members in these troubling times. ARLA members believe that we cannot stand by and merely hope that the injustices surrounding economic and racial inequality in our country solve themselves. We will work for true equality not just for members of organized labor and those we represent, but for all members of our communities.

We condemn racism in all forms and support the Black Lives Matter movement. As Bryan Stevenson wrote in Just Mercy, ‘We re all implicated when we allow other people to be mistreated.’ As lawyers and community leaders, we will do more.”

Endorsement from Our Firm

Rossi Vucinovich PC endorses the ARLA statement and stands behind the group’s commitment to condemn racism and work towards reaching “true equality” for all members of our nation. Our firm’s talented railroad injury lawyers have 50+ years successfully representing injured railroad workers and their families. We are dedicated to helping injured railroad workers obtain the benefits they need to treat their injuries, pay their bills, and continue supporting their families.

As with ARLA, our firm is not only committed to protecting the safety and rights of railway employees, but we are also dedicated to erasing the injustices that surround economic and racial inequality in our country. We support the Black Lives Matter movement and we condemn racism in all forms. We are saddened by the recent murder of George Floyd, and others that have shared his same unnecessary and disheartening fate. We strive to become leaders in establishing a better community for all our members.