BLE Focus

Long Island Railroad

The Long Island Railroad is the busiest commuter railroad in North America. The LIRR carries an average of 290,000 passengers each weekday on 735 daily trains. In total, 85.3 million people rode the LIRR in 2000.

LIRR was chartered on April 24, 1834, and for the past century and a half has provided rail service to the busy communities on Long Island. Now the LIRR system is comprised of nine branches, stretching from the eastern tip of Montauk, Long Island, to the refurbished Penn Station in Manhattan, approximately 120 miles away. As Long Island grew, the railroad developed further to provide better services.

The 6,000 employees of the LIRR, including 430 active BLE members, ensured that 92.7% of all LIRR trains arrived on time in 2000.

The BLE and LIRR

The relationship between the BLE and the LIRR has long been a contentious one. There has been a history of pattern bargaining that makes it difficult for the BLE to get a fair settlement for its members, according to General Chairman Robert M. Evers.

"The NMB has recognized and imposed pattern settlements in the railroad industry," said Evers. "These benefit and wage settlements are not commensurate with the superior qualifications, productivity and responsibilities of locomotive engineers."

Six years ago, Evers led his LIRR members on a work stoppage over the Memorial Day Weekend, shutting down the LIRR for several hours. The engineers had not received a wage increase in more than five years and the carrier refused to negotiate any allowance relative to certification. As a result of this job action, Division 269 members received a contract negotiated by engineers for engineers that addressed issues unique to the engineers' craft.

"It was unfortunate that we had to resort to these tactics," said Evers. "But we got what we wanted financially and, just as importantly, we restored respect and dignity to our craft. Many people consider it the most productive strike in BLE history. To this day it is the only BLE/LIRR Section Six settlement that was not a direct result of the NMB imposing a pattern settlement negotiated by another union or a Presidential Emergency Board."

The 700 active and retired members of the BLE from the LIRR are all members of BLE Division 269. They make up one of the most diverse memberships in the BLE.

The LIRR instituted a diversity in hiring program several years ago that has lead to an increase in non-traditional railway employees.

"As a result of the carrier's hiring practices, the membership on this railroad is becoming more diverse. Engine service employees are now recruited from outside the railroad industry and a few have already retired from other jobs encompassing many different sectors. This is somewhat daunting to this organization," said Evers.

"Many of these newly hired employees have never been union members previously and thus have difficulty embracing the organized labor movement. Some employees are unaware of, or simply lack an appreciation for the past, or do not realize the struggles and sacrifices made on their behalf that have provided them with the medical and pension benefits in addition to the wages they currently enjoy."

As employees of the busiest commuter railroad in North America, the BLE members on the LIRR are a source of diversity for the BLE, and, while this may have both positive and negative results, the BLE members on the LIRR are some of the most important links in the success of passenger rail in North America.

Continued on Page 8

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© 2001 Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers