Posts tagged BLET
NJ Transit engineers on strike after contract negotiations fail — wreaking havoc on commuters
May 16, 2025 // The union said in a statement Thursday that its engineers are the “lowest paid locomotive engineers working for a commuter railroad in the nation” — claims NJ Transit has denied. With the strike on, its members will form picket lines across the system starting at 4 a.m. Friday morning, at locations that include outside NJ Transit’s Headquarters in Newark (2 Gateway Center), Penn Station in New York City (8th Avenue and 33rd Street entrance) and the Atlantic City Rail Terminal. NJ Transit posted flyers and digital signage at major transit hubs in recent days, including the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan, warning of a “critical service advisory” and that customers should “complete their travels and arrive at their final destination no later than 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, May 15.”
NJ Transit, largest union reach tentative contract deal as engineers’ strike looms
May 9, 2025 // Last week, the head of NJ Transit says the company and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen had a deal but it was rejected by the Union membership. "Their view in my humble opinion, is neither reasonable nor affordable," NJ Transit Chairman Kris Kolluri said. New Jersey Transit says the union wants a salary of $190,000 a year. The union says base pay is $89,000.
Philly workers got organized in 2023. Look back on this year’s strikes, walkouts, and union campaigns.
December 30, 2023 // As worker organizing activity heated up toward the end of 2022, with new unions and strikes grabbing headlines through the fall, labor leaders predicted 2023 would be an even bigger year for employees seizing on their leverage.
RAIL WORKERS OUST UNION PRESIDENT WHO BACKED LABOR DEAL
December 20, 2022 // As members grew frustrated with the stalled negotiations process, Hall’s District 28 held a meeting where they voted to send a letter to Dennis Pierce “asking him to come down and, for lack of a better word, explain himself.” Pierce headed to Tucson in February of this year, and members weren’t satisfied with his responses. That’s when the district nominated Eddie Hall to run for BLET president.
Shippers want rail service reform even if unions ratify contracts
October 6, 2022 // Both BLET and SMART-TD said last Thursday that they finally reached a tentative agreement with the railroads, and that agreement will be sent to union members in the coming weeks for approval. The Association of American Railroads estimated that a strike would have cost the U.S. economy as much as $2 billion a day. Shippers lobbied Congress to ensure that the tentative labor deals were reached to prevent a strike.
Murphy calls NJ Transit union walk-out ‘despicable’ as engineers agree to court order
June 22, 2022 // The union representing NJ Transit locomotive engineers agreed to a temporary ban on anything that can be construed as a work stoppage, according to court documents. The union's agreement — following a holiday weekend in which nearly 500 locomotive engineers called out of work and hundreds of trains were canceled — resulted in a hearing scheduled for Tuesday to be canceled. U.S. District Judge Catherine O'Hearn, NJ Transit,
“Nonunion drivers are getting paid better than us:” Car haul truckers in US determined to strike Tuesday night
May 31, 2022 // We had a lot of guys leave because it’s better pay everywhere else. But there are perks to the union and that’s why I’m still here; the union is a family, but we got to get this pay right. “All of the other drivers who are nonunion are getting paid better.” Referring to the so-called Teamsters reformers in charge of the union, including new president Sean O’Brien, he said: “We are not elevating the appropriate people.
Former treasurer-secretary of local union charged with embezzling $30K
April 30, 2022 // The former treasurer-secretary of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen Division 26 was charged federally this week with embezzling more than $30,000 from the local labor union over five years.