Posts tagged Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen
Two unions announce opposition to UP-NS merger (revised)
July 30, 2025 // Two unions — the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, and the Transport Workers Union of America — have announced their opposition to the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger proposed today by the two railroads. SMART said it will oppose the merger when it goes to the Surface Transportation Board for approval, while the TWU — which represents some Norfolk Southern workers — said it “strongly opposes” the deal and is urging regulators, lawmakers, shippers and unions to block the transaction. Other unions have also expressed concern about the creation of a coast-to-coast railroad that would cover more than 52,000 miles and employ more than 52,000 people, although few have done so in language as strong as that of TWU International President John Samuelsen. In a statement, he called UP’s safety record “shameful” and said, “There is no world where Union Pacific should be controlling a coast-to-coast rail network.
NJ Transit, engineers’ union reach deal to end strike and resume service Tuesday
May 18, 2025 // Neither Murphy nor the engineers' union shared the specific details of the agreement. “While I won’t get into the exact details of the deal reached, I will say that the only real issue was wages and we were able to reach an agreement that boosts hourly pay beyond the proposal rejected by our members last month
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.
NJ Transit CEO rails against union as strike looms
May 8, 2025 // The NJ Transit Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen could strike as early as May 16 if the two sides do not reach an accord. They’ve remained at odds over the level of wage hikes, with engineers seeking increases that would bring their average salary to $190,000, while the agency has pushed for a contract that would bring that wage up to $172,000. “If there’s any citizen, private or government, in this environment who’d get a $25,000 pay raise and say, ‘No, no, that’s not good enough,’ does that sound like a group of people who are grounded in reality, or more importantly, on what is actually happening in the world we live in?” Kolluri told the Assembly’s budget committee. In written responses to questions asked through the Office of Legislative Services, NJ Transit warned it could face cost increases as a result of tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, though it said it lacks the information needed to gauge the impact tariffs would have.
NJ Transit warns commuters to prepare as engineers’ strike looms
May 4, 2025 // New Jersey Transit says the union wants a salary of $190,000 a year. The union says base pay is $89,000. The head of the union says his 425 members are paid 20 percent less than other regional train engineers.
NJ Transit engineers threaten strike after rejecting labor deal
April 18, 2025 // "Our number one issue is wages. New Jersey Transit engineers are among the lowest paid in the entire country," said BLET Chairman Tim Haas. "We are significantly behind passenger railroad engineers working in this same market—that is, the New York City area. We're far behind Metro-North, Long Island Railroad, Amtrak, PATH—all these other agencies where the New Jersey Transit engineers are leaving to go and work."
Clock ticks for NJTransit, engineer’s union to reach labor deal
January 22, 2025 // The agency and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen are in a two-month-long cooling period. The two sides have been locked in ongoing talks for more than four years without success, leading to former President Joe Biden calling in two presidential emergency boards to help break the ice. The first board sided with NJTransit but recommended that the agency raise its initial wage offer. A second board is set to release its own recommendations on Wednesday.
Transportation unions face key dates that could mean strikes in 2025
December 30, 2024 // Flight attendants at United Airlines, dockworkers on East Coast and Gulf Coast ports and locomotive engineers who operate NJ Transit commuter trains are all engaged in negotiations to reach new contacts. The International Longshoreman’s Association, known as the ILA, and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen are the closest to potential strike dates in 2025.
Flurry of contract deals come as railroads, unions see Trump’s election looming over talks
November 18, 2024 // But Hartford said “the morale is still poor” on most railroads after all the cuts and there is a strong feeling among some workers that maybe they could get more if they fight longer, so the Machinists rejected that deal. Conductors have also voted down all but one small deal on part of BNSF they have considered so far, and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen union has been unwilling to sign onto any of these early deals. Plus, the third largest union that represents track workers split on the deals it voted on so far.