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Bloomberg
18-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
NJ Transit, Rail Union to Resume Negotiations as Workweek Looms
New Jersey Transit officials and the union representing its rail engineers are set to meet again Sunday to resume contract negotiations, an effort to reach an agreement and end a strike that's halted train service for three days. Discussions were set to restart at 1 p.m. New York time in Newark at the agency's headquarters, and both parties will be joined by the National Mediation Board. Talks may go on for hours and even into the night, according to a person close to the negotiations.
Miami Herald
16-05-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
NJ Transit Strike: Map Shows Alternate Routes to Avoid Chaos
Rail service across New Jersey ground to a halt on Friday after workers began strike action, leading to major disruptions for hundreds of thousands of commuters. The action followed the breakdown of labor negotiations between New Jersey Transit and the unions representing its rail workers, many of whom say they have been working without a pay rise for five years. The strike began shortly after midnight on Friday, affecting more than 300,000 daily riders who rely on NJ Transit's extensive rail network. The shutdown affects almost all commuter train service in the state. The two sides had initially agreed to a "cooling off" period of 30 days in April. When that ended, the union proceeded with the strike as no agreement had been reached. In a news conference held on Thursday night, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy told reporters, "Let's get back to the table and seal a deal, and let's move forward on meeting our most important responsibility of all: serving the needs of New Jerseyans who rely on NJ Transit." "We must reach a final deal that is both fair to employees and at the same time affordable for New Jersey's commuters and taxpayers. Again, we cannot ignore the agency's fiscal realities," Murphy added. There is currently no end date for the strike. Union leaders and NJ Transit management remain divided over core issues, including wage increases and cost-of-living adjustments. Both sides held last-minute talks on Thursday-following a meeting with the National Mediation Board in Washington, D.C., on Monday-but failed to reach a deal. Regular NJ Transit bus routes are set to continue running as scheduled, offering critical alternatives for stranded riders. The Hudson-Bergen Light Rail, Newark Light Rail and River Line services also remain operational on regular weekday timetables. The map below shows weekday bus services that commuters can use to travel between New York and New Jersey. With all NJ Transit rail service suspended, the agency is implementing a limited contingency plan. Some additional capacity is being added to existing New York-bound bus routes, and a park-and-ride system is set to operate on weekdays, beginning on May 19, from key locations-including Secaucus Junction, PNC Bank Arts Center, Hamilton Station and Woodbridge Center Mall. However, the agency has acknowledged the limitations of its backup plans, saying on its website: "Through a combination of added capacity to existing New York bus routes, operation of a regional Park & Ride service, NJ TRANSIT estimates that it can only carry approximately 20 percent of current rail customers as the bus system capacity can not replace the railroad." Commuters are being advised to work from home or limit travel to essential purposes where possible. PATH trains, ferries and ride-sharing platforms are likely to see increased demand, while transit systems in New York are managing an uptick in cross-Hudson passengers. Murphy has said all options are on the table, including calling a state of emergency. No federal intervention has been announced, though such involvement remains possible if the disruption escalates or interferes with interstate commerce. Congress has the authority under the Railway Labor Act to impose a settlement on both parties, even if the union membership has rejected the proposed agreement. Commuters are urged to check NJ Transit's strike information hub regularly for updates. Related Articles 3rd Largest US Transit System Poised for Strike: Here's Who May Be AffectedWalmart Boycott Update-Blackout Organizer Tells Protesters 'Hold the Line'New York To Release Inmates From Jails Because of Staffing ProblemsSNAP Benefits Would Be Expanded Under New Bill 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
Wall Street Journal
15-05-2025
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
NJ Transit Strike Set to Begin at Midnight: What to Know
NJ Transit and union leaders representing locomotive engineers are locked in a yearslong battle over wages in a new labor contract that, if unresolved, could result in a strike Friday affecting hundreds of thousands of commuters. The two parties, NJ Transit and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, are still at the negotiating table in a last-ditch attempt to avert a work stoppage. They have assistance from the National Mediation Board for the negotiation of the new contract, which would cover around 450 locomotive engineers from July 2020 to June 2028.
New York Times
13-05-2025
- Business
- New York Times
New Jersey Is Facing a Possible Transit Strike. Here's What to Know.
Hundreds of thousands of New Jersey commuters may be caught up in the state's first transit strike in more than 40 years as soon as Friday morning. The engineers who drive New Jersey Transit's commuter trains have threatened to walk out after midnight Thursday if the union that represents them cannot reach an agreement with the agency on a contract that has been under negotiation for many months. The engineers have said they are seeking parity in pay with engineers at other commuter railroads in the area. The transit agency's chief executive, Kris Kolluri, has repeatedly said that it cannot afford the pay increases the union is demanding. The two sides met with the National Mediation Board in Washington on Monday in a last-ditch effort to resolve their differences. Mr. Kolluri said the discussion was 'constructive' and that he looked forward to continuing negotiations in good faith. In the meantime, New Jersey Transit has drawn up a contingency plan. But Mr. Kolluri said that the additional buses it would offer as a substitute in the event of a strike could handle only about 20 percent of the daily train riders. The agency has asked commuters to make plans to work from home if their presence in the workplace is not essential. Mr. Kolluri has said a strike could last for weeks. How likely is a strike? Most threatened transit strikes, like the last one in New Jersey nine years ago, do not materialize. But the tone of these negotiations has grown harsher as the strike deadline has neared. Last week, Mr. Kolluri questioned the 'mental health' of Thomas Haas, the general chairman of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, after the union's members overwhelmingly rejected a previous agreement. Mr. Kolluri and union officials shook hands on a deal that appeared to bridge the impasse more than a month ago. But the union engineers voted it down and sent their negotiator back to the bargaining table. Mr. Kolluri has refused to increase New Jersey Transit's offer, saying that any extra pay offered to the engineers would have to be paid to all 13 of the agency's other unions. 'This is the deal that was offered, that he shook my hands on, that he negotiated, and now he has to live with his consequences,' Mr. Kolluri said. Mark Wallace, the national president of the engineers' union, said that Mr. Kolluri was not interested in reaching a deal. 'He's trying to vilify us with the citizens of New Jersey,' Mr. Wallace said. What are the issues to be resolved? In most labor negotiations, the two sides disagree on a number of work rules, such as schedules and staffing levels. But this dispute is now just about money. Mr. Haas said last week that the union had agreed to 95 percent of New Jersey Transit's demands. 'The only sticking point we have are wages,' he said. 'Every other part of this contract is resolved.' But the gap between the union's pay demands and what the agency is offering is very wide. Mr. Kolluri said the offer the union voted down in March would have raised the average annual pay of full-time engineers to $172,000 from $135,000. But Mr. Haas said those figures were inflated. The union, he said, would happily accept a contract that raised engineers' annual pay to $173,000. In essence, New Jersey Transit insists that the 450 engineers represented by the union accept the same contract terms that all of the agency's other unions accepted. Just last week, the agency announced a contract deal with its biggest union, which represents 5,500 employees of its bus network. But the engineers say they should be paid on a par with the drivers of trains at the region's other commuter railroads, including the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad. They say those railroads pay their engineers about $10 an hour more than New Jersey Transit pays. What will happen if there is a strike? Most commuters do not remember the last transit strike in New Jersey, which happened in 1983 and lasted about three weeks. Another strike loomed in 2016 but was averted a day before it would have begun. But the contingency plan New Jersey Transit has created is similar to the one used 42 years ago. It involves chartered buses running from four satellite lots around the state to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan or to stations of the PATH train in North Jersey, starting on May 19. There would be no chartered buses on the first day of the strike. Each bus carries about 100 passengers, compared with as many as 1,000 on a full train, Mr. Kolluri said. The buses will accommodate only about 20 percent of the 70,000 commuters who take trains into the city, he said. Some displaced commuters are likely to try to switch to existing bus routes operated by New Jersey Transit and private carriers. Others are likely to drive at least part of the way to the city, adding traffic to already congested roads, transportation experts said. 'If the strike does happen, even with a contingency plan in place, this is going to be incredibly disruptive to the region,' said Zoe Baldwin, vice president for state programs at the Regional Plan Association. 'No matter what mode you're on, you're going to have a more difficult commute than usual.'
