NJ Transit Rail Service to Resume Tuesday as Engineers’ Strike Ends

The strike by NJ Transit locomotive engineers ended Saturday afternoon, May 18, following a tentative agreement between the agency and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET).

All rail service will resume on Tuesday, May 20, according to NJ Transit. The strike, which began Friday, marked the first labor stoppage at the agency in 42 years.

BLET General Chairman Tom Haas said the new agreement improves on the proposal previously rejected by union members. “We were able to reach an agreement that boosts hourly pay beyond the proposal rejected by our members last month,” Haas said. “We also were able to show management ways to boost engineers’ wages that will help NJT with retention and recruitment, without causing any significant budget issue or requiring a fare increase.”

The tentative agreement will be sent to BLET’s 450 members for a ratification vote. NJ Transit’s board is expected to vote on the deal during its June 11 meeting.

Mark Wallace, National President of the BLET, credited both union support and public backing. “Our members at NJ Transit had the full support of our national union, as well as the Teamsters,” Wallace said. “We also appreciated the outpouring of support we received from NJ Transit passengers and the labor community.”

Wallace noted that Congress did not intervene under the Railway Labor Act. “Allowing strikes to happen encourages settlement rather than stonewalling,” he said.