In an effort to better communicate information as quickly as possible to the Local 60 Membership, here is the ” HOT TOPICS” for this week.

A) I have settled a claim with the Carrier that concerns the final piece of unfinished business over the last contract agreement. I fought for and won retroactive wage payments for all active and retired Members of Local 60 during the last contract negotiations. There was a small group of deceased or disabled Members who the Carrier deemed “not active” therefore they did not receive their retroactive payment.  I am now able to say that I have secured those retroactive wage payments to ALL Members of Local 60 who were entitled. Their families or surrogates will be notified shortly of any monies that are owing to them. I have never forgotten these Members or their families and I am grateful to be able to have them compensated properly.

B) Tuesday November 6th is ELECTION DAY, please vote! We have a list on our website from Ron Sabol NJSLD dated September 15 of the recommended candidates we ask you to support.

C) I am asking any student of the Conductor Training Program that was required to have Sleep Apnea testing done BEFORE they were invited to attend the class to email me directly. This would apply to any student from the last 2 years that was required to pay for testing out of their own pocket. Email me at sburkert@utulocal60.com

D) Vacation bids must be in before November 6th, please send completed bids to crew dispatchers. Vacation eligibility information is available under members tools on this page.

Please email me feedback or suggestions, I am here for you the Members. sburkert@utulocal60.com

Fraternally,

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman

In an effort to better communicate information as quickly as possible to the Local 60 Membership, here is the ” HOT TOPICS” for this week.

A) Local 60 election ballots have been mailed out to Members, if you have not received your ballot please call the Netcong office at 973-527-7018 and request a duplicate ballot.

B) NJSLD Ron Sabol is working in Trenton on language for a new Bill about the 11th Amendment issue. I will be providing information to all Members on how to contact their elected officialson this matter as soon as the Bill is finalized.

C) Please continue to fill out the FAIL TO MEET SLIPS if train crews can not collect revenue due to understaffing on trains.

D) Election day is eleven days away we encourage all members to get out and vote and please participate in a local labor walk if you are available  http://www.njaflcio.org/13_days_election_day_volunteers_needed

Please email me feedback or suggestions, I am here for you the Members. sburkert@utulocal60.com

Fraternally,

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman

In an effort to better communicate information as quickly as possible to the Local 60 Membership, here is the ” HOT TOPICS” for this week.

A) This week is ROLLOVER, if your job is listed on this weeks bulletin, you must bid your job assignment if you want to retain ownership. This is the weekly bulletin where you are NOT the automatic bidder. Please bid your own job if you want to stay on it and it is listed this week.

B) I have sent a notice to the Carrier about the job changes, that included many complaints from crews about how jobs were adjusted. The Carrier has full authority in assignment changes the Union has no say in changes or abolishments.

C) There is a Union meeting this Sunday at 10am at the Linden VFW hall.

D) The mold issue in NY Penn Hotel has been resolved, please notify if there are any more issues in the future.

Please email me feedback or suggestions, I am here for you the Members. sburkert@utulocal60.com

Fraternally,

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman

In an effort to better communicate information as quickly as possible to the Local 60 Membership, here is the ” HOT TOPICS” for this week.

A) I did have an opportunity to speak with CTP Class 18-02 and 17-03 at Ferry Street this week. There were some questions on DH and Gas miles for those on OJT or out qualifying. Please see the attached letter below, this was an issue I have already addressed with NJ Transit and was successful in getting our Members in CTP class properly compensated. I also made sure that any Member who was shorted monetarily was paid correctly. If there are any further questions please contact me directly for the correct answer.

B) The RAILMAN FOR CHILDREN GOLF OUTING is this Saturday, it will be held at Minebrook Golf Club in Hackettstown NJ. Please come out and support the event, all monies raised goes to the annual Santa Train for special needs or underprivileged children. If you need more info look on this website under the Events tab.

C) I was notified from the National Mediation Board that 7 cases that were pending from Local 60 Members will be funded. The 7 Members will be notified via mail by next week. The hearing date will be in December for the majority of these cases. The cases date back as far as the Sandy Storm and almost all are discipline cases. I will be preparing the cases to be heard by the arbitrator, and will be contacting those affected Members for their input on their case.

D) Rollover is October 14, I have requested from the Carrier an advanced copy of both the employee timetable and the proposed job changes or additions.(the new ETT is available under members tools-downloads) I will notify and distribute these items as soon as the Carrier provides them to me.

Please email me feedback or suggestions, I am here for you the Members. sburkert@utulocal60.com

Fraternally,

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman

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In an effort to better communicate information as quickly as possible to the Local 60 Membership, here is the ” HOT TOPICS” for this week.

A) The Carrier, as per the contract, has informed me that ROLLOVER will be on October 14, 2018.

B) I was successful in working with NJTPD on getting police officer patrols back out riding our trains on nights and weekends. NJ Transit is in the process of hiring more police officers and these assignments will be more regular in the near future. The train crews I spoke with on the property said having the patrols on the platforms while loading and then walking through the trains during the trip was very helpful.

C) I have already asked the Carrier to distribute asap the new job run sheets and the corresponding employee timetables that will go into effect on October 14. The added time will allow our Members to research the assignments properly.

D) This week I met with a large contingent of General Chairman, International Officers and Local Officers from NJ Transit Bus and Rail Division Unions. The group met for the purpose of discussing current events that affect all unions on NJ Transit, particularly pending legislation in Trenton or Washington DC. The group will be meeting again in the near future and we will be having representatives from light rail also included.

E) I did meet with the Carrier about its plan to replace the NEXTEL phones with new “iPhone 7” model. The new phones will give the train crews advance notice of cancellations, track outages or any other incident before the information is distributed to the passengers. The new model of phones are also equipped with “one touch” safety features for contacting police in an emergency. I will be making the Carrier adhere to all contractual obligations as pertain to a company issued device.

Please email me feedback or suggestions, I am here for you the Members. sburkert@utulocal60.com

Fraternally,

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman

In an effort to better communicate information as quickly as possible to the Local 60 Membership, here is the ” HOT TOPICS” for this week.

A) I have spoken to Chief of Police Trucillo and Deputy Chief Clark about uniformed police officers riding our trains to help deter assaults on our Members. There will be train riding patrols starting tonight through Sunday night. The officers will be starting out in New York Penn Station and riding out with us, then return to Penn Station for later trips. I have asked for all available help in reducing the assaults.

B) The Carrier has abolished the Supplemental Extra List as of this Sunday. They have set up a call in list procedure for the day before you want to work. please refer to the weekly job bulletin for the correct phone numbers. I will be filing a grievance due to the fact that this is not proper action according to our Collective Bargaining Agreement. They have agreed to provide the us with the list daily, we will post on our site, this will help members see there position on list while seeing who is in front and behind them.

C) There is a Local 60 Union meeting this Sunday at 10 AM at the Linden VFW.

D) The Carrier has reneged on a verbal commitment concerning the AC Extra List. The 18 regular ACRL passenger assignments will continue to assist in the busing operations while remaining in AC. The AC Extra List Members were suppose to be able to use their “PICK” to any list without the junior person being displaced. The Carrier has elected not to adhere to this plan of action and junior members were displaced. I will be filing a grievance on behalf of those affected Members.

E) The RAILMEN FOR CHILDREN GOLF Outing is September 29. Please look at the flyer under EVENTS on this website for details on how to participate. The golf outing is the main source of fundraising for the annual SANTA TRAIN for disabled/underprivileged children. Please come out and support the event.

F) I met with Executive Director Corbett this morning about Sleep Apnea, Assaults, Under Staffing of Trains and expectations of the fall train service plan. NJ Transit will be revising the Sleep Apnea Policy in the near future with major improvements. The assaults were discussed and different ideas were put into place to prevent the assaults.

Please email me feedback or suggestions, I am here for you the Members. sburkert@utulocal60.com

Fraternally,

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman

In an effort to better communicate information as quickly as possible to the Local 60 Membership, here is the ” HOT TOPICS” for this week.

A) ASSAULTS on TRAIN CREWS– I spoke with Executive Director Corbett last night about the increase in frequency of the assaults. We will be working with NJTPD to have police officers riding on our trains to assist with unruly passengers. There have been 7 arrests made in connection with the latest UNUSUAL OCCURRENCE REPORTS made by our Members. I have the full cooperation of Executive Director Corbett and Chief of Police Trucillo that all areas will be investigated to protect our train crews. NJ Transit will be prosecuting all of those arrested to the fullest extent of the law.

B) I called for an emergency meeting yesterday to address the Carrier’s change in the 013 policy. I explained in the meeting that the Collective Bargaining Agreement should be adhered to and past practice is upheld was my stance. Therefore the 013 policy will remain in effect as it has been working on our property.

C) I was in Hoboken Terminal on Wednesday to meet Members and explain current events for our Local. I also did a safety inspection of the entire terminal with the NJ Transit Office of System Safety. I was particularly concerned about the amount of construction and its effect on air quality for our Members. All areas where our Members use the facility were inspected and a report will be published with the findings.

D) The weekly assignment bulletins and run-sheets that were distributed have errors and there will be new ones coming out today. The Raritan Valley assignments that were changed are only temporary and will revert back in about 6 weeks when Track 5 work is complete.

E) I want to wish all Members and their families a Happy and Safe Labor Day Holiday.

Please email me feedback or suggestions, I am here for you the Members. sburkert@utulocal60.com

Fraternally,

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman