New York and New Jersey stood. Hundreds of thousands

The strike of suburban train drivers seriously disturbed the rail transport between New Jersey and New York. Hundreds of thousands of passengers had to look for alternative ways to overcome this route.

The strike started on Friday is the first strike of New Jersey Transit employees in over forty years. It broke out after the negotiations of the new collective labor system. The Blet Trade Union, representing about 450 train drivers, emphasizes that their postulates remained unanswered.

“In my opinion, we have been forced to strike because the New Jersey Transit authorities have gone from the negotiating table. The ball is now on their side,” said Mark Wallace, national president of the Union, quoted by AFP.

The main axis of the conflict is remuneration. The union points out that its members have not received a raise for five years. Trainers, earning an average of 113 thousand dollars a year. The New Jersey Transit authorities, in turn, claim that the average salary of train drivers is currently 135,000 dollars, and their demands assume a salary increase to 172 thousand. dollars a year.

The CEO of NJ Transit, Kris Kolluri stated that the fulfillment of the requests of train drivers could lead the company into the financial “Spiral of Death” and in the perspective of several years to lead to its liquidation.

New Jersey Transit serves about 350,000 a day. passengers, including tens of thousands of people commuting to New York. The strike caused huge disturbances, forcing many travelers to work, and others to use alternative means of transport – buses, cars, taxis or ferries flowing through the Hudson River.

Reuters informs that in order to alleviate the effects of protest, New Jersey Transit has rented private buses. However, he warned that additional vehicles would be able to transport only about 20 percent. regular rail passengers. The strike also led to the cancellation of trains and buses serving MetLife Stadium during Shakira's Thursday and Friday concerts.

New Jersey, Democrat Phil Murphy, emphasized the need to reach “the final agreement, which will be both honest for employees and affordable for travelers and taxpayers.”

From New York Andrzej Dobrowolski (PAP)

Ad/WR/