As Gov. Phil Murphy, his administration and NJ Transit union leaders slap each other on the back for agreeing to a contract that ended the NJ Transit strike, New Jersey Assemblywoman Nancy Munoz is speaking up for the commuters and taxpayers who have been railroaded by the deal.
“NJ Transit commuters deserve an apology, but instead they get told, ‘The fare increase to pay for the union’s demands won’t be that bad,’” Munoz, R-Union, the Assembly Republican budget officer, said in a release.
“Whenever there is a problem at NJ Transit, whether it’s delays, equipment failures, or contract disputes, it’s always the riders and taxpayers paying the price,” Munoz added. “The engineers deserve to be paid fairly, but the administration has to find another way to make the numbers work.”
Murphy, NJ Transit CEO Kris Kolluri and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers & Trainmen announced Sunday evening that they had tentatively settled on a new contract to increase wages for union members and “didn’t require a significant fare increase.”
The sticking point for negotiations has been salary increases. A tentative agreement in March would have increased the average engineer’s salary from about $135,000 to $172,000, retroactive to 2020 and effective through 2028.
However, engineers rejected those terms, demanding wages on par with other regional transit workers.
“Trenton Democrats leading this state have lost touch with the working and middle class,” Munoz said. “New Jersey cannot keep raising taxes, fees, and fares to boost salaries, benefits or funding for just special groups. Eventually, fewer and fewer riders and taxpayers will be left to foot the higher bills. It becomes unsustainable.”
Murphy’s budget last year included a 2.5% corporate transit fee on the highest-earning businesses to create a revenue stream for NJ Transit. The 11.5% corporate business tax is the highest in the nation.
In July 2024, the Murphy administration instituted a 15% NJ Transit fare hike and approved additional 3% hikes annually.
“Both Murphy and the union have been working on a new contract since 2019. Perhaps, if they had found some kind of internal cost savings at NJ Transit, taxpayers and commuters wouldn’t be the ones being railroaded,” Munoz said. “This public transportation and fiscal crisis is the fault of Trenton Democrats.”
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