Attached is the PEB recommendation this is our first step in securing a new agreement and the consensus is favorable, it is a big document so we will be reviewing and checking our numbers but we wanted to get it out to members ASAP. Please remember this a recommendation from the PEB and not an offer from the carrier some points can and will be negotiated. Please read the document and become familiar with the RLA  process, and the stage we are currently at. This is far from being resolved but we are one step closer to having a agreement with NJT.

Below is the email and breakdown we received from coalition leadership;

We just received the PEB report and overall the results appear good.  Bottom line is 18.38% compounded wage increases over 6.5 year term, and 17.54% increases net of health and welfare contributions.

GWIs recommended

7/1/11  0%

1/1/12  .5%

7/1/12  1.0%

1/1/13  1.0%

7/1/13  1.5%

1/1/14  1.5%

7/1/14  1.5%

1/1/15  1.5%

7/1/15  1.5%

1/1/16  1.5%

7/1/16  2.0%

1/1/17  1.5%

7/1/17  2.0%

1/1/18  amendable

• Says parties to meet and work out retro payments.
• Healthcare contributions are to be at a percentage of straight-time wages, as follows:
• 7/1/11  1.8%
• 1/1/12  2.0%
• 1/1/17  2.5% thru 1/1/18 amendable date
• Plan design changes recommended: $15 doctor visits; $70 emergency room; mandatory mail order prescriptions.
• Cert Pay is 20 mins. at straight-time rate for shifts worked as a conductor, pro-rated for partial shifts.
• Recommended new hire 401(a) contributions phased in over 5 years but still based on gross pay.
• No recommended work rule changes.
• No recommended changes to ridership passes.

We are still making a full evaluation.  So stay tuned for more.

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Today our GC along with some of your local 60 officers and members, including other union represenatives, stood with Senator Menedez U.S. Senator (D-NJ) in support of a new transportation authorization bill, he unveiled key principles for public transportation and Local 60 is in agreement with our Senator with this legislation and encourage members to support it.

“I categorically reject the idea that we can’t afford to fix our transportation system; we can’t afford not to fix it,” said Sen. Menendez, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development, which has jurisdiction over transit. “Let’s stop pretending the transportation problem is going to resolve itself if we just wait long enough. Hundreds of thousands of New Jersey families and millions of Americans rely on a safe, reliable, affordable transit system, and Congress must finally accelerate on real investments and stop putting the brakes on upgrades, innovations and protections.”

“Senator Menendez is a true champion for the commuters of NJ Transit,” said Steve Burkert, General Chairman of SMART-Transportation Division Local 60, which is a member of the NJ Transit Rail Labor Coalition. “We applaud the Senator’s efforts to gain long term funding for NJ Transit. This funding will promote future growth and properly maintain current infrastructure. The safety of the passengers who ride our trains on a daily basis should never be compromised due to budgetary restraints. We stand here today in full support of Senator Menendez and his pursuit of funding the Public Transportation Reauthorization Bill.”

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Senator Bob Menendez will be holding a rally tomorrow at 11:00am at the Ridgewood train station. A handful of your SMART-TD officers will be in attendance and encourage any member who is available to attend. He is promoting legislation that directly affects us and our family’s. This is an important step in getting politicians in Trenton to recognize we are aligned with them and we need their support.

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The Executive Order established the Presidential Emergency Board effective July 16, 2015, and the Emergency Board will report its findings and recommendations for settlement to the President within thirty (30) days of its creation.

President Obama also announced that he intends to appoint the following members to Presidential Emergency Board No. 248:

• Elizabeth C. Wesman – Chair, Presidential Emergency Board No. 248
• Barbara Deinhardt – Member, Presidential Emergency Board No. 248
• Ann Kenis – Member, Presidential Emergency Board No. 248

https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/07/15/president-obama-announces-presidential-emergency-board-names-members