News & Reviews News Wire Dispute between NJ Transit, engineers goes to second Presidential Emergency Board

Dispute between NJ Transit, engineers goes to second Presidential Emergency Board

By Trains Staff | November 26, 2024

Move prevents strike for another 120 days

Email Newsletter

Get the newest photos, videos, stories, and more from Trains.com brands. Sign-up for email today!

Commuter train approaching station
An NJ Transit express train hurries through Ridgewood, N.J., in August 2019. The dispute between NJ Transit and its engineers is going before a second Presidential Emergency Board. David Lassen

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden has formed a second Presidential Emergency Board to address the dispute between NJ Transit and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen.

The three members of the board were announced by the White House on Nov. 21. The board now has 60 days to produce a report selecting the offer it considers most reasonable; its selection prevents any work stoppage for 120 days.

The first board was named in July [see”Presidential Emergency Board named …,” Trains News Wire, July 25, 2024]. It sided with NJ Transit’s argument that the BLET should receive the same raises accepted by the transit agency’s other 14 rail unions, which amount to 12%, uncompounded, over a 4½-year term, and recommended three years of additional 3% raises, as well as two lump-sum payments of $1,500 each. That would make a 21% increase over 7½ years. The union, which says it is the lowest-paid among commuter rail engineers in the country, sought a 15.36% “wage equity adjustment” on top of the NJ Transit offer, as well as three years of 3% raises, for a total increase of 36.36% over 7½ years [see “Presidential Emergency Board recommends …,” News Wire, Sept. 5, 2024].

NJ Transit’s engineers have been working without a contract since 2019 and authorized a strike in 2023 [see “NJ Transit engineers vote to strike,” News Wire, Sept. 1, 2023]. But the two sides must complete the lengthy process outlined under the Railway Labor Act before any work stoppage is possible.

2 thoughts on “Dispute between NJ Transit, engineers goes to second Presidential Emergency Board

  1. The above pic brings back fond memories. When I worked there in the telecom dept., the railroad mainline was 4 tracks at the time in the early 70s eventullt reduced to 3 tracks. The open wire phone lines were supported by concrete poles over the Ridgewood Depot station platform, some of which were crumbling with exposed rebar.

    About one mile east, as per pic, was Ridgewood Junction interlockng tower, (old telegraph code ‘WJ’), where the 4 track east bound mainline separated into 2 tracks on the Bergen County mainline, and two tracks to and through mainline Patterson (formerly to Rutherford) to the E-L’s newly connected old DLW mainline via Patterson, Clifton, Kingsland, etc., where the two mainlines eventually recombined for commuter trains near west of the Hoboken 4 track catenary (DLW) tunnel. I recall how often we had to chip the winter ice off of the lead cable in that 4 track tunnel with permission from the tunnel-end interlocking tower operator. Brrrr!!! 🙂

  2. njt is mismanaged by the state and transit moronic peopl. no I do not work at transit but been in the passenger servicve all railroads are run very bad. management hate labor, labor donot trust management when have politics in it

You must login to submit a comment