LIRR shutdown – New York’s Long Island Rail Road is moving toward a possible shutdown as negotiations with unionized locomotive engineers, machinists, signalmen and other workers near a hard 60-day deadline.
When a commuter train system that moves hundreds of thousands of people each weekday can’t agree on a contract, the real clock isn’t on a calendar. It’s on the rails—and this week, the Long Island Rail Road is staring at a shutdown deadline.
The LIRR, the busiest commuter railroad in North America, carries about 250,000 customers each weekday.. It has been negotiating for months on a new contract with labor officials representing locomotive engineers. machinists. signalmen and other train workers.. Five labor unions—representing about half of the system’s roughly 7. 000-person workforce—warned this week that the deadline approaching Saturday could end in a legal strike or a lockout.
The 60-day window runs out at 12:01 a.m. Saturday. The parties will still have a chance to settle before the union is legally allowed to go on strike or the agency could lock out workers.
This isn’t the first time the LIRR has danced around the edge of disruption. Workers last went on strike in 1994, lasting about two days. In 2014, labor action was nearly triggered until then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo reached a deal with unions.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority. which oversees the LIRR and other area transit systems. said it will provide free but limited shuttle buses during the morning and afternoon rush hours if service is disrupted.. The shuttles would depart from designated LIRR stations to subway stops in the Queens borough of New York City.
Gov. Kathy Hochul urged riders to work from home if possible, saying the free shuttles are intended for essential workers and those who cannot telecommute. Earlier, Hochul had criticized the LIRR unions, calling their demands “greedy asks” that could “destabilize the local economy.”
Still, there have been signs of movement in the negotiations this week, leaving the situation tense but not static.
Months ago, the MTA proposed a 9.5% wage increase over three years, matching what other unionized workers in the system have already agreed to. The unions pushed back, holding out for another yearly salary increase of 6.5%, which they said would amount to a 16% raise over four years.
After closed-door meetings on Wednesday. Gary Dellaverson. the MTA’s chief negotiator. said the agency offered what it described as a contract that would effectively translate into a 4.5% raise in the fourth year.. Dellaverson said the offer would come through lump sum payments rather than wage increases. aligning with what the union asked for.
“The difference between those two positions is not unbridgeable,” Dellaverson said at a news conference. “It is describable simply in terms of money. There are no longer any complexities involved with the parties.”
Kevin Sexton, a spokesperson for the unions, acknowledged “positive movement” toward a settlement after Wednesday’s meetings, but warned against expecting a deal. He called the idea that an agreement was close “far-fetched.”
“We would like to reach an agreement that reflects the rising cost of living,” Sexton said. “Anything short of that amounts to a cut in real wages.”
The MTA, which oversees the negotiations, did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment Thursday. But the unions said the two sides were expected to continue talks later Thursday and reconvene Friday if no deal is reached.
For riders, the threat of disruption is already reshaping plans. Susanne Alberto, a personal trainer from Long Island, said she has made contingency arrangements with Manhattan clients for virtual sessions in the event of a shutdown.
She said the union likely has the upper hand, even as she believes raises should be tied to job responsibilities rather than applied across the board.
“The MTA is going to cave, and they know that,” Alberto said. “Why don’t they just do it now instead of waiting until virtually millions of people get inconvenienced?”
Rob Udle, an electrician who takes the LIRR at least five days a week, said he expects to use vacation days if service stops, rather than attempt what he described as the “nightmare” of commuting into Manhattan without trains.
Udle said he understands affordability concerns but criticized what he called “strongarm tactics.”
“I get it, the cost of living is going up and stuff like that,” Udle said while waiting at Penn Station for a train home. “But they shouldn’t hold everybody hostage to do it. There’s a better way. You’re affecting a lot of other people.”
With the deadline closing in and both sides signaling that the final gap is still very much about money, New York’s commuter system is left to wait for talks that could either hold—or break—right before Saturday’s clock runs out.
Long Island Rail Road LIRR shutdown labor negotiations union strike Metropolitan Transportation Authority MTA Hochul Dellaverson Sexton