Long Island Rail Road strike is over, New York Gov. Hochul says

The Long Island Rail Road strike has ended, according to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul.

“Tonight, the MTA reached a fair deal with the five LIRR unions that delivers raises for workers while protecting riders and taxpayers. I’m pleased to announce that phased LIRR service will resume beginning tomorrow at noon,” Hochul said in a statement on X Monday night.

The LIRR serves more than 300,000 commuters daily.

“The strike is ending at midnight tonight,” MTA CEO Janno Lieber said at a press conference Monday night, shortly after Hochul’s announcement, where he was joined by the governor and LIRR President Rob Free.

Service will resume at noon Tuesday, with full service in effect by the afternoon commute and in time for Tuesday night’s New York Knicks basketball game, Hochul said.

The governor also said she wasn’t at liberty to describe any details of the deal, pending ratification by the unions, but did say that commuters will not see a train fare increase to pay for any part of the new deal.

Commuters should check the LIRR app and website for the train schedule as service ramps up, Free said, adding that the morning commute will rely on bus and shuttle service as it did on Monday morning.

“I’m grateful that LIRR unions and the MTA reached an agreement tonight that recognizes both the critical importance of the LIRR and the workers who keep it running,” New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said in a statement on X Monday night, in part. “City Hall and City agencies will continue to coordinate to monitor traffic conditions, keep commuters safe, and support New Yorkers.”

The strike, the first by the LIRR in 32 years, began Saturday at midnight after the union representing thousands of rail workers and the the New York Metro Transit Authority (MTA) failed to reach an agreement on a new contract.

Kevin Sexton, the national vice president of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET), one of the five unions representing LIRR workers, told reporters that he and other leaders could not come to an agreement over salary increases and health care costs before the negotiation deadline ended.

Lieber said during a Sunday press conference with Hochul that what the unions asked for would force riders to “pay the cost of a labor settlement that blew up the MTA budget.” 

Negotiations resumed Sunday afternoon when the National Mediation Board, an independent federal agency that manages labor relations in the railroad and airline industries, summoned both sides to a meeting.

Negotiations picked up again Monday morning as LIRR riders sought transportation alternatives.

The unions demanded wage increases of 14.5% over four years, ABC New York City station WABC reported, while MTA officials offered slightly smaller increases and a lump-sum payment in the contract’s fourth year to make up the difference. The proposed pay bumps are largely in line with contracts accepted by the LIRR’s conductors and New York City Transit workers, WABC reported.