LIRR union, MTA to negotiate lucrative work rule that pays engineers double
LIRR engineers earn a second day's pay if they operate electric and diesel trains in the same shift. Credit: Newsday/Steve Pfost
The LIRR locomotive engineers' union and MTA managers have agreed to discuss changes to one of the railroad's most scrutinized work rules, officials said.
The same day the Metropolitan Transportation Authority board ratified new contracts for about 3,500 Long Island Rail Road workers who went on strike last month, Gilman Lang, general chairman of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, wrote MTA leaders Wednesday offering to "engage in further negotiations" over his union's work rule, which allows engineers to earn a second day's pay if they operate electric and diesel trains in the same shift.
LIRR deputy chief labor relations officer Kevin Coughlin wrote in response Thursday that the MTA is "prepared and eager to discuss modifications" to work rules, and offered to meet next week.
The MTA has long held out the rule as the most glaring example of costly, antiquated and irrational union provisions that can result in workers piling up overtime pay with minimal extra work. MTA officials have said they sought to change the rule as part of the recent negotiations for a new contract, but union leaders refused.
WHAT NEWSDAY FOUND
- The LIRR locomotive engineers' union and MTA managers have agreed to discuss changes to a 60-year-old work rule that provides a second day's pay if a worker operates an electric train and a diesel train in the same shift.
- The agreement comes after both sides finalized a new contract — achieved following a three-day union strike — that will raise wages almost 15% over four years.
- The MTA has said it's willing to pay workers more in exchange for concessions on the rule, but the union believed such talks should be held separately from negotiations over wage increases.
"We’re stuck with it," MTA chairman Janno Lieber said Wednesday of what's known as the "comingle" rule. "The public is stuck with it forever."
But in his letter, Lang said the union "consistently advised [LIRR management] that it was willing to engage in discussions concerning" the 60-year-old work rule, but believed those talks should be separate from negotiations over wage increases.
The settlement reached between five of the LIRR unions and the MTA, following a three-day strike, will increase worker pay by about 15% over four years.
"Since there is a mutual interest in addressing this issue, as reflected in ... public statements by MTA and LIRR leadership, the appropriate forum is the collective bargaining process established by the parties," Lang wrote.
Strike negotiation subject
Days after the MTA and the unions last month agreed to a deal to end the strike, Lieber said MTA negotiators made it clear that "the offer remains open" to alter, or eliminate, work rules in exchange for added compensation for the workers. During the contract negotiations, the MTA sought to reduce what's paid to engineers who operate two different kinds of trains in one shift from an extra day’s wages to one hour’s wages.
MTA officials would not say how much they pay in penalties for the work rule each year, but in 2011 said they paid out $685,569 in comingle penalty payments the previous year. There are also costs associated with trying to avoid violating the rule, including by keeping more trains and train operators around than is typically necessary.
The union’s apparent willingness to alter the comingle work rule comes ahead of expected changes to the LIRR’s fleet that could significantly lower the rule’s value. In December 2024, the LIRR entered into a $788 million contract with Siemens Mobility Inc. to build 44 new "dual mode" locomotives that will replace most of the railroad’s aging fleet of diesels. The new trains could operate on both diesel and third rail electric power, reducing the potential for an engineer to be assigned to operate two different kinds of trains during one shift.
The MTA's chief of external relations and policy, John McCarthy, told Newsday the future value of the rule would be taken into consideration in negotiations.
Despite technological innovations, retired LIRR locomotive engineer Jeff Anderson said he expects diesel locomotives will always have a place in the railroad, including to tow disabled electric trains and to move equipment in rail yards.
As vilified as the rule has been by MTA managers, Anderson said in an interview Thursday it has likely saved the MTA money over the years, because before it was negotiated, the LIRR had to employ separate engineers to drive different trains.
"Everything's open to negotiation," said Anderson, author of the book "Thirty Years Behind the Throttle: The Unexpected Journeys of a LIRR Locomotive Engineer." "And as long as engineers feel like they’re getting something of value for it, then it might be a great deal for everyone."
Alfonso Castillo has been reporting for Newsday since 1999 and covering the transportation beat since 2008. He grew up in the Bronx and Queens and now lives in Valley Stream with his wife and two sons.
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