New Jersey train engineers go on strike, leaving 350,000 daily commuters stranded

ISTANBUL

Train engineers in the US state of New Jersey went on strike early Friday, halting all commuter rail service and disrupting transportation for an estimated 350,000 daily commuters, NBC News reported.

Approximately 450 members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen walked off the job, citing a lack of a contract since 2019 and no pay increases in six years. The union claims its members are the lowest-paid engineers on major US passenger railroads.

New Jersey Transit, which operates statewide rail lines and connections into New York City, said it cannot meet the union’s demands without risking similar demands from other labor groups—a scenario it warned could cost hundreds of millions of dollars.

“New Jersey Transit is facing a sobering fiscal reality,” Governor Phil Murphy said Thursday, hours before the strike began.

NJ Transit has urged commuters to work remotely whenever possible. MetLife Stadium also informed concertgoers that there would be no rail or bus service available for Shakira's performances on Thursday and Friday due to the complete shutdown.