Brothers and Sisters,
It has been evident for some time now that New Jersey Transit has been engaged in a program of targeted harassment and disrespect towards locomotive engineers. While we do not know for certain what is motivating these actions, we don’t need to be detectives to see a connection between this course of action on their part and our determination to get a fair contract instead of their effectively wage cutting agreement on our part.
While this is not meant to be an exhaustive list of every action NJT has taken in a continued attempt to demoralize us, as an example of the deliberate harassment we face I offer the following.
- New Jersey Transit has walked back a previously negotiated agreement on payment to members called to active duty in our armed forces. This agreement was almost finalized and would have provided uniform and consistent compensation for members serving our country and defending our freedom, while putting their lives on the line.
- New Jersey Transit has recently announced their intention to violate the status quo provision of the Railway Labor Act by implementing a new, revised agreement regarding the taking of optional days by extra list engineers, without negotiation or agreement by the BLE&T.
- New Jersey Transit has offered an amnesty to other crafts in regard to the attendance policy, while maintaining strict enforcement of this aggressive, capricious, and demoralizing policy for locomotive engineers. This has caused a number of disciplinary actions for locomotive engineers that would have otherwise been waived.
- New Jersey Transit has refused to honor the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) regarding several important provisions, including but not limited to; the 10.4% differential (with conductors now positioned to be paid more per hour than locomotive engineers effective July 1, 2023), payment for completing RSD forms, payment for being used on other assignments, payment for irregular service at the final terminal, reimbursement for using your personal vehicle in company service, and other issues. NJT instead has forced these matters to be brought to binding arbitration, meaning that even when the BLE&T is victorious in the resolution of these claims, locomotive engineers will have lost out on the opportunity to gain interest on that money.
- New Jersey Transit has increased disciplinary action and discipline against locomotive engineers, including disparate discipline assessed to locomotive engineers for similar violations as other crafts.
- New Jersey Transit wrongfully dismissed the General Chairman of the BLE&T, without showing any wrongful actions of behavior on his part, and is forcing the matter to binding arbitration for resolution.
- Most significantly, New Jersey Transit has refused, and continues to refuse to negotiate in good faith with the BLE&T to come to a fair and reasonable agreement in the current bargaining round. Instead, New Jersey Transit management continues to demand that locomotive engineers accept the concessionary agreement, with it’s effective 10% wage cut in real wages, only because other crafts have accepted it.
Brothers and Sisters, let me be perfectly clear. We will not knuckle under. We will not give up our fight and roll over simply because other organizations have accepted New Jersey Transit’s offer. What may have been an acceptable offer to those other organizations is not acceptable to us, and WE WILL NOT ALLOW OTHERS TO DICTATE THE TERMS OF OUR COLLECTIVE BARGINING AGREEMENT.
Brothers and Sisters, I understand the frustration you all feel. This has been a long and drawn-out process, and we are not yet at the end of the road. Despite this, however, we must remain unified and strong. Together we are strong. Together we are powerful. Together we are a force to be reckoned with. Together we will make New Jersey Transit hear our voices as one. We are locomotive engineers. We move the State of New Jersey. We deserve respect and we will get it, no matter how long this process takes. STAY STRONG BROTHERS AND SISTERS! UNITED WE WIN!!!!
Thank you,
Jim Brown
General Chairman
BLE&T/NJT