All Hell Broke Loose in NJ Transit Land
So, like, there was this super intense strike that totally shut down all NJ Transit rail service on Friday. Can you even believe it? But guess what? The nightmare is finally over! Full service is set to get back on track Tuesday morning, according to state officials and the union representing the locomotive engineers. Phew, right?
Initially, the union was all like, “Hey, service will be back on Monday, no worries.” But then NJ Transit was like, “Hold up, we need about 24 hours to check out the tracks, trains, and other stuff before we can start chugging along again.” So, they were all, “Contingency bus service will keep on keepin’ on through Monday, just FYI.”
The Big Cheese at NJ Transit, Kris Kolluri, was all about encouraging commuters to just work from home on Monday if they could. He was like, “Yo, this extra time is crucial for making sure we can restart everything safely and smoothly.” He went on to say, “Running hundreds of trains every day is no joke. We gotta make sure all the gear is in the right place, all the safety checks are done, and all the tracks are good to go.”
The whole shebang started when the NJ Transit engineers peaced out at midnight on Friday because the contract talks went down the drain. It was like, the first major railroad strike in Jersey since, like, forever (okay, since 1983, but still). The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen were all about getting more cheddar, but NJ Transit was like, “Nah, that’s too much.”
But guess what? Sunday rolled around, and they finally reached a deal after months of back-and-forth. The engineers, about 450 of ’em, hadn’t seen a raise or a new contract in six years. Tom Haas, the head honcho at BLET, spilled the tea, saying, “Okay, so, the main problem was the dough, but we struck a deal that ups the hourly pay more than what got shot down last month. Plus, we came up with ways to boost wages without breaking the bank or jacking up fares.”
But wait, the deal isn’t set in stone yet. The BLET crew and NJ Transit’s bigwigs still gotta give it the thumbs up. The union peeps will vote online, and NJ Transit’s board will make it official at their next meeting on June 11. All the nitty-gritty details will come out once the union folks have had a chance to mull them over.
The NJ Transit and BLET leaders almost had a deal back in March, but the union crew shot it down in April, setting the stage for this whole mess. When asked why this time might be different, Gov. Phil Murphy was like, “Well, we got to a pretty sweet spot, so that’s cool.” He added, “Today’s a good day for Jersey. Commuters are probably breathing a sigh of relief right about now.”
Kolluri spilled the beans, saying they really listened to what the union peeps were saying this time around. They ironed out the kinks and made sure everyone was on the same page. And get this, the cost of the deal is totally manageable. They kept it fair and fiscally responsible, yo. NJ Transit was hemorrhaging about $4 million a day during the strike, so this deal is a big win.
Before this whole mess got sorted out, NJ Transit’s engineers were getting peanuts compared to other commuter railroads. They were dead last in the pay game, even though they were working in one of the priciest metro areas. Now that the strike’s over, Beyoncé fans can breathe a sigh of relief. They’ll have a smooth ride to MetLife Stadium for her epic five-show run starting Thursday.
So, that’s the scoop for now. Stay tuned for more juicy deets as this wild ride unfolds.
