Long Island Rail Road workers went on strike as of 12:01 a.m. Saturday after not reaching a new contract deal with the MTA.
NEW YORK (WABC) -- The National Mediation Board has stepped in to the LIRR strike to try to help resume bargaining between the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the striking unions.
The coalition of five Long Island Rail Road unions and the MTA were summoned to a meeting in Manhattan.
The federal labor agency governs labor relations for railroads and airlines.
The news comes hours after New York Governor Kathy Hochul called for talks to resume to end the strike by LIRR unionized workers, which has shut down the Long Island Rail Road, North America's largest commuter rail system.
The five unions represent about half its workforce, including engineers, signalmen and trainmen.
The unions and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority have been negotiating for months on a new contract, with talks stalled over workers' salaries and healthcare premiums.
Hochul is urging the roughly 250,000 people who ride the system to work from home on Monday, if they can.
The National Mediation Board has stepped in to the LIRR strike to try to help resume bargaining between the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the striking unions.
The coalition of five Long Island Rail Road unions and the MTA were summoned to a meeting in Manhattan.
The federal labor agency governs labor relations for railroads and airlines.
LIRR union representative Mike Carlucci said he appreciated the governor's public comments but criticized the lack of direct negotiations.
"I still remain disappointed that we're not talking right now," Carlucci said. "We're not in the room getting this done."
According to Carlucci, two independent presidential boards have already reviewed the dispute and concluded the union's demands are reasonable. He urged decision-makers to return to the negotiating table and move the process forward.
The strike has significantly disrupted commuters across Long Island, leaving many unable to travel into New York City. Carlucci acknowledged the widespread impact, noting that union members themselves are also feeling the strain.
"This is affecting everyone, including us," he said. "We're working without money right now. But we have to stay together and fight for what we believe is fair and equitable."
New York Governor Kathy Hochul urged the LIRR unions to return to the bargaining table during a press conference on Sunday morning.
"Just three days of a strike would erase every dollar of additional salary that workers would receive under a new contract. We don't need to be here. Workers deserve better, but also New Yorkers deserve better. That's why today I'm urging all parties once again to bargain at the table and to get a deal done," she said.
The governor said that starting at 4:00 a.m. on Monday, the MTA will deploy shuttle buses to subway stations in Queens for essential workers.
The parking lot at Citi Field will be open and available for people to park and take the 7 train, Hochul said.
Those who are able to have been urged to work from home by the governor.
"It's impossible to fully replace LIRR service. So, effective Monday, I'm asking that regular commuters who can work from home should. Please do so. And employers should make every accommodation necessary to allow for remote work," the governor said.
Officials announced that additional resources will be made available for the NYC subway system to handle the potential influx of riders on Monday.
MTA CEO Janno Leiber said that what the unions have asked for would force riders to "pay the cost of a labor settlement that blew up the MTA budget."
"We said right up to the deadline that the unions had imposed, 'Let's talk, let's keep talking,' and we sat there in the hallway, so they couldn't even avoid seeing us, that we were available to talk to them right up to and through the deadline; it was they who elected to walk out," Lieber said.
Nassau County Executive and Republican candidate for governor Bruce Blakeman took aim at Gov. Kathy Hochul during a press conference on Sunday, calling the LIRR strike "a complete failure of leadership" and emphasizing his support for LIRR workers.
"She doesn't look at our workers as though they are participants in government, she looks at them as servants," he said.
Blakeman said he "stands with workers" and urged Governor Hochul to reach a deal quickly to end the strike, which is disrupting travel for hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers. He also reiterated his opposition to congestion pricing.
"What we have here in New York State is a complete failure of leadership," Blakeman said.
He noted that this is the first railroad worker strike in three decades, pointing out that both Republican and Democratic administrations had previously maintained labor peace.
"When you look at Kathy Hochul's track record when it comes to labor relations, she is the worst governor in the history of New York State," he said.
Blakeman also referenced past labor disputes, including strikes involving nurses and corrections officers. He criticized the state's response to those situations, including the use of out-of-state nurses and National Guard troops in correctional facilities.
"It's cost taxpayers billions of dollars," he said, while adding that he supports union workers and their leadership.
The county executive argued that the current labor impasse reflects misplaced priorities, contrasting worker negotiations with state spending.
Hochul later responded to Blakeman saying there's no legal mechanism to stop congestion pricing.
"What we're encouraging people to do is stay home. Not to divert this into, you know, a campaign event," she said. "This is serious business. And I want to make sure that people know that we hope to have a very shortened strike. That's our hope. But we were prepared for anything that happens."
