Railcrew Xpress Lawsuits: Harassment, Discrimination, and Wages

Railcrew Xpress lawsuits span nearly the full range of employment and transportation litigation: sexual harassment and retaliation, disability discrimination, unpaid overtime, personal injury from van crashes, and an earlier civil rights employment case. The North Kansas City, Missouri crew transport company has also drawn a federal labor board charge and cut hundreds of jobs after losing major contracts. What follows is a case-by-case look at the legal actions on the public record.

Sexual Harassment and Retaliation: Lechler v. Railcrew Xpress

In December 2025, former RCX driver Virginia Lechler sued the company in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, alleging sexual harassment, a hostile work environment, and retaliation under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.¹

Lechler was hired in September 2017. Beginning in April 2018, according to the complaint, three Union Pacific employees — Mario Ramos, David Sanchez, and Adrian Ibarra — made inappropriate comments about her body and pressed persistent sexual advances. She said she reported the conduct to her RCX supervisor, Albert Morales, and that no corrective action followed. The complaint describes a November 2019 incident in which Sanchez allegedly questioned her appearance and invited her to his home, leading to a confrontation between Lechler’s husband and Sanchez. Days later, the complaint says, RCX manager Tim Barclay told Lechler she was banned from Union Pacific property and effectively terminated.¹

Before filing suit, Lechler went through the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The EEOC issued a Letter of Determination in August 2025 finding reasonable cause on the harassment and retaliation claims, followed by a Notice of Right to Sue in September 2025.¹

The case did not reach a decision on the merits. Lechler filed multiple notices of voluntary dismissal in March and April 2026, and the court issued deficiency notices on the filings. On April 30, 2026, Chief Judge Alia Moses signed an order finalizing the case, and the clerk entered judgment terminating it.²

Disability Discrimination: Powley v. Railcrew Xpress

Leah Powley, a former RCX driver and dispatcher, sued the company in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska, alleging violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Nebraska Fair Employment Practice Act.

Powley was hired as a driver in July 2015 and later promoted to a dispatcher, or “starter,” position. She developed back pain and headaches and asked to return to a driving role, citing office noise and lighting. Her doctor’s note set limits on her working hours but did not connect the transfer request to a medical disability. RCX denied the request, citing a policy that barred starters from returning to driving jobs, and treated a follow-up email from Powley as a resignation. She added a constructive discharge claim.³

The district court granted summary judgment to RCX, finding that Powley had not told the company her requests were driven by a disability, had not followed the company’s accommodation procedures, and had not shown her working conditions were objectively intolerable.⁴

The Eighth Circuit affirmed in February 2022. The appellate court held that while employees do not need “magic words” to request a disability accommodation, they must make it reasonably clear they are asking for help with a disability. Because Powley’s complaints centered on office conditions rather than her medical needs, she had not met her initial burden. As the court put it, “where there is no conceivable request for an accommodation, there is no failure to accommodate.”³

Wage and Overtime: Stephenson v. Railcrew Xpress

In 2019, former employee Debra Stephenson sued RCX in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, alleging that the company misclassified her as exempt and failed to pay overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act. She also brought an age discrimination claim under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.⁵

The dispute grew out of a 2018 Department of Labor investigation into RCX. The company settled with several employees during that investigation, but Stephenson did not reach an agreement, which led to the suit. The parties later resolved the case through mediation. On May 14, 2020, the court approved a $14,000 FLSA settlement, finding it resolved a legitimate wage dispute and was fair to both sides.⁵

Van Crashes and Personal Injury Claims

RCX’s core business is driving railroad crews in vans, frequently at night and over long distances, and vehicle accident cases are a recurring source of legal exposure. These claims are typically brought under the Federal Employers Liability Act, which holds railroads liable for injuries caused by the negligence of their agents. Courts have treated crew transport companies as agents of the railroads they serve.⁶

In November 2018, Union Pacific worker Trevor Wright sued both Union Pacific and RCX in Harris County District Court in Texas, alleging that an RCX driver fell asleep at the wheel and crashed the transport vehicle into a fence, injuring him.⁷ Public reporting does not include a final outcome. Common allegations in this category of case include driver fatigue, poorly maintained vehicles, and reckless driving, while carriers often dispute injury severity by pointing to pre-existing conditions or minimal vehicle damage.

Earlier Civil Rights Employment Case: Battle v. Railcrew Xpress

Primrose Battle Jr. filed suit in the Lancaster County District Court in Nebraska; the case was removed to the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska in August 2011. Classified as a civil rights employment matter, it named RCX along with Brown’s Crew Car of Wyoming, Inc. and Brown’s Crew Car of Wyoming, LLC as defendants.⁸ The parties entered a stipulated protective order in February 2012, and the case was terminated on March 20, 2012. The specific claims and any settlement terms are not detailed in the public record.⁹

NLRB Unfair Labor Practice Charge

On July 23, 2025, the United Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers of America (UE), Local 1477 filed an unfair labor practice charge against RCX with the National Labor Relations Board. Docketed as Case 27-CA-370014 out of the NLRB’s Denver regional office, the charge alleges that RCX unlawfully discharged employees, refused to recognize the union, and refused to bargain in good faith.¹⁰

An amended charge was filed on September 5, 2025. As of the most recent docket entries, the case remains open and the NLRB’s general counsel has not issued a formal complaint.¹⁰ The UE already represents drivers at RCX’s competitors Hallcon and Professional Transportation Inc. (PTI), which it organized in 2009 and 2020, and has publicly stated a goal of organizing workers at all three major crew transport companies.¹¹

Layoffs and Lost Contracts

Two rounds of mass layoffs frame the recent litigation and labor activity. In February 2020, RCX laid off more than 600 drivers after losing its contract with Amazon, filing WARN Act notices in Texas, Florida, and Alabama.¹²

A second wave came in late 2025 and early 2026 after RCX lost its contract with CSX Transportation to competitor Hallcon.¹³ The CSX contract was set to end on February 27, 2026. RCX filed WARN notices in Virginia, Georgia, Florida, and North Carolina and cut more than 400 positions out of its roughly 2,000-person workforce, with at least eight North Carolina office locations slated for permanent closure. Employees in Kansas and Missouri were reported to be unaffected by that round.¹⁴

1
San Angelo Live. Woman Working on Railroad Sues for Sexual Harassment
2
PACER Monitor. Lechler v. Railcrew Xpress, Inc.
3
FindLaw. Powley v. Rail Crew Xpress, LLC
4
GovInfo. Powley v. Railcrew Xpress, LLC, No. 4:19CV3058
5
CaseMine. Stephenson v. Xpress, No. 5:19-06054-DGK
6
SMART-TD. What Are My Rights if I’m Injured in a Hired Van?
7
BLET. UP Worker Sues for Injuries After Railcrew Xpress Driver Falls Asleep at the Wheel, Crashes
8
GovInfo. Battle v. Railcrew Xpress, LLC et al, No. 4:11-cv-03132
9
PACER Monitor. Battle v. Railcrew Xpress, LLC et al
10
NLRB. Case 27-CA-370014
11
PTI Union / UE. PTI Union Home
12
FreightWaves. Railcrew Xpress Laying Off 600-Plus Drivers After Losing Amazon Contract
13
Hallcon. Hallcon Announces Contract to Manage Class I Rail Employee Transport Services for CSX Transportation
14
KCTV5. Kansas City-Based Transportation Company to Lay Off Hundreds of Employees