Federal court dismisses former railroad employee’s “whistleblower” claims against Amtrak

In Williams v. National Railroad Passenger Corp., 14-CV-10009 (AT) (S.D.N.Y.), the plaintiff claimed she was discharged from her employment at Amtrak, in retaliation for having reported an altercation with her supervisor, in violation of the Federal Railroad Safety Act (“FRSA”), 49 U.S.C. § 20101, et seq.  In dismissing her retaliation claims, the Court explained that this employment dispute clearly was not the kind of conduct or condition contemplated by the FRSA, as no railroad safety or security law was implicated. Indeed, the Court aptly observed, “the FRSA was intended to prevent and control safety risks like train derailments and security risks like terrorism, not the noninjurious contact of one railroad employee’s arms with another’s.”  In short, the Court agreed that plaintiff had not engaged in whistleblower activities for purposes of the FRSA in reporting the dispute with her supervisor.  The LCBF team was headed by Mark Landman.