BLET, New Jersey Transit reach tentative agreement, ending three-day strike

Members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen initiated a strike early on Friday to demand better pay from New Jersey Transit. On Sunday, both parties announced that they had reached a tentative agreement, bringing an end to the three-day strike. Photo by Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen/X

Negotiators from the state of New Jersey and the union representing hundreds of locomotive engineers declared on Sunday that they had reached a tentative agreement, resolving the first statewide transit strike in 40 years. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed, but the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen union had been pushing for a wage increase for its 450 members. The union stated that the specifics of the agreement would be shared with its members after they had the opportunity to review it.

The strike began at 12:01 a.m. on Friday after negotiations abruptly ended. Although an agreement had been reached between the union and NJ Transit in late March, it was rejected by union members in mid-April. This marked the first statewide transit strike in over four decades. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy’s office confirmed that rail transit services would resume, with regular weekday train service set to resume on Tuesday after necessary inspections and maintenance work following the strike.

The tentative agreement now awaits ratification by BLET members and approval by the NJ Transit Board of Directors. The primary sticking point during negotiations was the issue of pay, with BLET emphasizing that its members were among the lowest-paid locomotive engineers at a major commuter railroad in the country. Before the strike, NJ Transit estimated that over 350,000 daily riders would be impacted by the work stoppage.

The Partnership for New York City calculated that each hour of delay for commuters due to NJ Transit rail service disruptions cost New York City employers nearly $6 million.