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9/16/2025
A coalition of five unions have requested the creation of a Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) to mediate the dispute between the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the unionized MTA Long Island Rail Road employees.
The request of a PEB postpones a potential strike that would have started Sept. 18. A work stoppage would impact nearly 300,000 commuter-rail riders, CBS New York reported.
If the unions' request for a PEB is granted, the board would make recommendations in mid-October.
"If these unions wanted to put riders first, they would either settle or agree to binding arbitration. And if they don’t want to strike, they should say so — and finally show up to the negotiating table. This cynical delay serves no one," said John McCarthy, MTA's chief of policy and external relations, in a prepared statement.
About half of the LIRR's workforce has accepted the disputed contract, which offered 9.5% wage increases over three years.
The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, the International Brotherhood of Electrical workers and the Transportation Communication Union, banded together to dispute the contract.