By Hank Russell
Local and national officers of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers & Trainmen (BLET) will hold a news conference on September 15 to announce the results of a strike vote by its nearly 600 members who operate trains at the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR). Members of the locomotive engineers’ union employed by the MTA at the LIRR began receiving ballots by mail at the end of August seeking authorization to call a strike when permissible under the rules of the federal Railway Labor Act. Results of the vote will be tabulated in the morning of September 15 and announced later in the afternoon.
The BLET is bargaining in a coalition alongside the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS), the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW), the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), and the Transportation Communications Union (TCU). Combined, the coalition represents more than half (55.08%) of the unionized workforce at LIRR.
BLET members at the nation’s busiest commuter railroad, along with the members of four other rail unions, have been without a pay raise for over three years, since April 2022, despite near record inflation. “Our members and the members of four other unions at the LIRR have gone since 2022 without a raise. What we’re asking for is exceedingly reasonable, essentially the status quo when it comes to the cost of living,” said BLET Vice President Kevin Sexton. “MTA’s response has been to stall, stall, stall.”
Gil Lang, general chairman for the BLET’s LIRR engineers, said management has only made concessionary contract offers that would result in a loss of real wages for BLET members. “We are only asking for a fair contract — one that provides modest wage gains, or at the very least, maintains real wages, our members would not ratify anything short of that. Wages are the only real issue.”
The contract dispute between the employer and the coalition of rail unions has been in National Mediation Board-sponsored mediation since February 2024. NMB released the parties from mediation on August 18, triggering a 30-day cooling off period under the Railway Labor Act, ending at 12:01 a.m. on September 18. At the end of the cooling off period, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, the MTA or one of the five unions could request that the Trump administration intervene and form a Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) to avert a strike or a lockout by the employer.
On September 11, LIRR President Rob Free held a press conference inside Penn Station to discuss the possibility of a strike. He said that, if on September 18 at 12:01 a.m., BLET members walk the picket line, this will greatly affect 270,000 daily riders.
Free said the agency offered a 9% pay raise over three years, but BLET wanted an additional 6.5% “without any concessions, including outdated work rules that significantly inflate salaries.”
LIRR riders. “Think about the chaos that could ensue from [BLET’s] actions,” Free said, adding, “I am hopeful we can get everyone back to the table.”
“They said it’s because of inflation and the cost of living,” Free continued. “[I]s it fair to inconvenience the hundreds of thousands of LIRR riders … by going on strike?”
In the event of a strike, the LIRR has made contingency plans for its riders. “It’s impossible to replace full service, but we’re doing the best we can to preserve access to transit for LIRR customers,” said MTA Chief Customer Officer Shanifah Rieara. “Should there be a strike, we encourage riders to work from home if it’s at all possible.”
The MTA will provide limited shuttle bus service on weekdays for essential workers and those who cannot telecommute. Buses will run every 10 minutes during peak hours, Manhattan-bound from 4:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. and to Long Island from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. from three LIRR stations to subway transfer points in Queens.
- Bellmore Station (LIRR) to Howard Beach-JFK Airport (A)
- Hicksville Station (LIRR) to Mets-Willets Pt (7)
- Ronkonkoma Station (LIRR) to Mets-Willets Pt (7)
Limited shuttle bus service will be available from points east to subway connections in Queens. The MTA encourages riders in Nassau County to consider using NICE buses to connect with the New York City Subway at Flushing-Main St (7), or travel to the Jamaica Bus Terminal in Queens, which is a four-minute walk from the 169th Street (F) subway station.
Customer Ambassadors will be deployed at key LIRR stations and subway transfer points to direct riders to alternate travel paths.
Accessible travel options will be available at Bellmore, Hicksville and Ronkonkoma stations. Customer Ambassadors at those stations will be available for assistance.
For those Long Islanders choosing to be dropped off at MTA subways, we recommend using the following subway stations. These stations are close to major roadways that lead to and from Long Island. These stations do not have parking lots and would be for drop-offs only.
- Far Rockaway-Mott Av (A)
- Kew Gardens Union Tpke (E)(F)
- Mets-Willets Pt (7)
- Ozone Park-Lefferts Blvd (A)
- Parsons Blvd (F)
- Sheepshead Bay (B)/(Q)
- Woodhaven Blvd (J)
Pending approval of the MTA Board, the Long Island Rail Road intends to issue prorated refunds to September monthly ticket holders for any business day that service is suspended due to the strike.
The MTA will post information to its website at http://mta.info/lirrstrike.