New Jersey Transit Workers Return to Work After Strike for Higher Pay

On Friday, May 16, 2025, 450 New Jersey Transit engineers walked off the job for the first time in over 40 years. The strikers were protesting for higher wages, and though the NJ Transit board was hesitant at first, both sides came to a tentative agreement after only three days of striking. 

The strike was led by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET), a union that is a division of the Rail Conference of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. BLET represents 51,000 train service workers at freight and passenger railroads across the United States. The union members unanimously called for a strike and gave the members of NJ Transit their full support. 

BLET’s general chairman, Tom Haas, acknowledged that the only real issue behind the strike was wages. The engineers at NJ Transit make only $39.78 an hour, which is $10.14 less than workers at the Long Island Rail Road, and $17.42 lower than engineers at the Metro-North Railroad. As the National President of BLET, Mark Wallace, reasoned “NJ Transit has a half-billion dollars for a swanky new headquarters and $53 million for decorating the interior of that unnecessary building. They gave away $20 million in revenue during a fare holiday last year. They have money for penthouse views and pet projects, just not for their front-line workers.” However, the company maintains that they are on shaky ground financially. In 2023, the year they last released their financial statements, the company estimated that by June 2025, they will be $119 million in debt. That same year, they applied for federal financial assistance, with a total of $1.43 billion. Since then, the company has kept quiet about their financials. 

NJ Transit Headquarters

The union has been looking for a raise since 2019, and this is

not the first time this year that the union has brought up its concerns. In March of this year, the union rejected a deal that the company proposed. NJ Transit offered to raise the workers annual pay, publicly saying he would raise the wages from $135,000 to $172,000. But Haas, the chairman of BLET, told reporters that these amounts were overstated. 

NJ Transit Headquarters

The day before the strike, May 15, BLET members and transit managers had a 15-hour meeting discussing pay raises. Despite this, they did not reach an agreement, and the strike began as planned, 

The strike began at 12:01 am on Friday, May 16. Picket lines began at three locations at 4:00 am Friday. The strike prevented NJ Transit trains from running, stranding approximately 350,000 commuters.

The strike continued over the weekend, with discussions restarting on Saturday. On Sunday, the National Mediation Board (NMB) called both sides to the table. The NMB is a government agency that helps labor workers and companies in the railroad and airline industries come to agreements. On Sunday, the union members and transit managers came to an agreement. 

Kris Kullori, the CEO of NJ Transit, clarified that this agreement is a “series of concessions that came together by way of a work rule that will eventually end up paying for this fair wage that the union’s have asked for.” This agreement still needs to be voted on and agreed upon by both parties, so the details of the deal have not been released to the public yet. NJ Transit engineers returned to work on Monday, May 19, but full service resumed on Tuesday, May 20.

Overall, the strike, though impacting over 350,000 people, was helpful to the thousands of workers relying on the wage given to them by the transit company. The issue of wages was resolved quickly, and serves as a reminder that workers can protest for fairer working conditions.