Brothers and Sisters:

The General Committee met with the Senior Director of Human Resources and her staff, along with the Director of FMLA. Any member that believes he/she received this letter in error, because they are in compliance with their current certified FMLA are to call Kathleen Roseme @ 973-491-8023, and Nancy Alvarez @ 973-491-7226. The members should call and ask them to provide you accurate information on how he/she violated the “usage”. We were told if members received these letters in error they will send the member a retraction letter, and call the member personally with an apology. I IMPLORE everyone to call if you believe you received the letter in error.

Have a great weekend.

The Carrier is investigating two proposals which I have discussed with them regarding our Members. The first has to do with an 8 for 8 daily pay for all Members, whether in the yard or passenger service. The second has to do with the assistant conductor new hire classes. I explained to the Carrier that we are not getting enough applicants for hire because it takes too long to achieve full rate of pay over 5 years. I have requested the old standard be reinstated of three years for full rate. The Carrier is researching both proposals at this time. I have asked the Carrier not to wait until the end of the year to implement both of these proposals, as it will benefit both the Member and the Carrier. I will keep the Members informed as information becomes available.

Fraternally,

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman  

Members as you are aware our present contract runs through December 31 of this year. I will be able to present to NJ Transit on October 1 what we are looking to achieve in the next round of negotiations.  I have sat with the Carrier, informally, numerous times since the last Agreement was signed to discuss ideas from our side of the table. Work rule changes will be in the forefront in this round of talks. I have already secured the change in DH compensation through claims. I believe higher wages, everyone being paid for all time on duty and adjusting the new hire wage progression back to its original time limits, will be at the top of the list. The hourly wage should be brought in line with our comparable railroad neighbors. I will keep you informed as information develops.

Fraternally,

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman

I contacted SMART TD on December 17, 2018 after a hundred or more Member ballots were returned by the U.S. Post Office to our Netcong office. The ballots were all marked as “UNDELIVERABLE”. I contacted SMART TD because, according to our constitution, there are time constraints when remailing ballots. I attached photos to illustrate the issue with the ballots. SMART TD immediately replied saying that the ballots in the photos did not conform to the SMART TD CONSTITUTION and the ballots would have to be completely redone. I was asked at this time whether the same issue occurred during the November election. I was told that because the defect was the same, the November election would also have to be redone.

The ballot preparation was done in the Netcong office and supervised by Local President Johnson and Secretary Sussman. I had nothing to do with the preparation of either sets of ballots, contrary to the rumors that are on the property. SMART TD took issue with the ballot preparation because it did not comply with the SMART CONSTITUTION. I ask that you please read the following letter from SMART TD so you have truthful information.

I will keep the Members informed as I receive more information about the election. I wish you all a safe New Years Holiday.

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) On Monday of this week I was in Atlantic City Terminal to speak with our Members affected by the service suspension. I also spoke with Senator Chris Brown and a group of NJ Assembly Members about the rail suspension and the reasons why it must happened. I explained to all who were present that I am pushing for a more robust train schedule when the train service resumes. I facilitated and am a part of a meeting with NJ Transit and the AC Convention Center entity for next week, ahead of the line suspension, to discuss their needs for better schedules for their employees and events. We will also have a group from the AC Casino industry involved to provide their work shift information.

B) On Wednesday of this week I had the pleasure of welcoming a new class of students that are taking our Conductor Training Program. This is the second class of the year, 18-02 and has 25 students. I enjoyed speaking with the new class and answering their questions about our craft and our job responsibilities. I wanted to impress on them that we are a family here at Local 60 and welcome them.

C) Yesterday I was in Bay Head yard speaking with both morning and afternoon crews about ACRL and other current events. I did have a good opportunity to explain legislation coming out in the future on RESIDENCY LAW, CREW ASSAULT BILL and a MINIUMUM CREW SIZE. I have been extremely active along with Ron Sabol NJSLD in improving protections for our Members through communication and education of our politicians.

D) While in Bay Head yard Ron Sabol and I gave an afternoon tour of the facility and yard to NJ Assemblyman Eric Houghtaling from Monmouth County. We explained the importance of the yard, the effects of Superstorm Sandy and the need for improvements for our passengers in reliable equipment. Houghtaling appreciates the importance of the train service and agreed that we should always look to improve the service.

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

Fraternally,

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman

Members,

This has been a very stressful month for both you and our passengers that utilize NJ Transit. AMTRAK will be performing work to improve rail conditions in Penn Station NY. This work will involve both redirecting trains and closing tracks. Certain trains may be rerouted to a different terminal during this time. Our responsibility during this time is to perform our duties as professionally and safely as possible. We are tasked with collecting ALL of the fares on the train that we work. Please be mindful there is no rule that allows us “not to collect fares” during a service disruption.

If a passenger causes a disturbance on board a train or refuses to pay a fare, please be polite and explain to them you are required to call for police assistance for a fare refusal. If after this explanation no payment of fare is made, call the line dispatcher and request police assistance. While waiting for the police assistance, please make a PA announcement about the delay. Once police assistance arrives on scene, the passenger who refused to pay the fare will be removed from the train. There will be no opportunity for the passenger once the police arrive, to then pay the fare, since the train has already been delayed.  The passenger will then be under the direction of the police officer on scene.

In closing, the recent AMTRAK service disruptions were never our fault nor were the delays that followed. I am asking all members for patience and understanding when dealing with our passengers. I would hope the passengers extend the same amount of respect and courtesy to our crews, as we strive to get them to their destinations safely.

Thank you and be safe,

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman- Local 60

The Carrier is requesting all crews that normally work on Wednesday to report at their normal time and location. Please be safe in your travels.

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman

The Carrier is requesting all crews to report to their sign up locations at their normal sign up times for the next 2 days.

Fraternally,

Stephen J. Burkert

General Chairman