With two days left before New Jersey Transit rail workers could go on strike, negotiators from the agency and its rail unions met again on Thursday but did not reach an agreement.þþTransportation agency officials held talks with the unions for most of the day in Newark and planned to meet again on Friday morning. A rail strike could begin as early as Sunday if the agency does not reach a deal with the unions over wages and benefits.þþBut even as both sides reported progress in the talks, the rail unions were angered on Thursday by a notice that New Jersey Transit issued to workers about conditions under a strike, including the suspension of health benefits. The unions called the notice “draconian” and said it showed the agency was unwilling to reach a fair solution.þþA spokeswoman for the agency, Nancy Snyder, said the notice was required by federal law.þþEarlier in the day, New Jersey Transit’s lead negotiator, Gary Dellaverson, told reporters that the negotiations were headed in a positive direction and that both sides wanted to avoid a strike.þþ“There is a common goal to reach that conclusion in a timely fashion, so that the threat of a strike is lifted from the heads of the commuters,” Mr. Dellaverson said at a news conference. “Every effort is going to be made to not be doing this on Saturday night.”þþCommuters and employers have been making contingency plans for a shutdown that could paralyze travel in the region. New Jersey Transit warned residents that additional bus service could handle fewer than half of its regular train riders.þþThe agency’s 4,200 rail workers have been working without a new contract since 2011. The dispute has centered on wage increases and employee contributions for health care.þþOn Thursday, Mr. Dellaverson said that the two sides were discussing the potential contract language and “arithmetic” over its terms. Still, he said the agency might take some behind-the-scenes measures as early as Friday to start winding down service in case a strike happens.
Source: NY Times
