Shareholders voted to keep Norfolk Southern’s top executive and most of its board members, after a proxy fight that one federal regulator called a threat to the railroad industry.
Norfolk Southern has been under pressure since one of its trains derailed last year in East Palestine, Ohio, causing a chemical spill and fires that forced people to evacuate their homes.
CEO Alan Shaw has tried to overhaul the railroad’s safety practices since then, primarily by adding staff and installing new equipment. An investor group, Ancora Holdings Group, mounted a campaign in February to oust most of the railroad’s board of directors and install new executives who would focus on cost-cutting and efficiency.
Just last week, Surface Transportation Board Chair Martin Oberman told an industry conference that Ancora’s proposed cuts in staffing and locomotives would make the railroad less resilient. While stressing he couldn’t take sides in the argument, he said “it is my responsibility to call out serious threats to the national rail network.”
