On May 16th, New Jersey Transit locomotive engineers decided to hit back against their rotten bosses—and go on strike! This came after negotiations between their union and management fell apart, and the rank and file voted no on a previous agreement. Though the union reached another tentative deal two days later, this moment remains significant. It marked the first time they’ve walked off the job since 1983. New Jersey was at a standstill.
Strikes are schools for communism. When workers go on strike, it sharpens the contradictions between bosses and workers, exposes the limits of reform, and gives workers a taste of their collective power. It’s training for the kind of organization workers need to bring this whole system grinding to a halt. With communists in Progressive Labor Party (PLP) by their side, showing the way, they can take things further—fighting for a new world where we’re in charge. Join us!
These engineers have been without a new contract or a raise since 2019. Despite that, they’ve kept the system running—moving around 350,000 New Jersey residents each day—while enduring substandard equipment, managerial neglect, and unsafe conditions, especially during the worst days of COVID-19.
As expected, NJ Transit CEO Kris Kolluri has slandered these workers for daring to withhold their labor. He’s accused them of "holding the state hostage" for wanting to earn more than their base $89,000 salary—an amount that’s barely survivable in the New York metropolitan area. Meanwhile, his own annual salary sits at $280,000. On top of that, NJ Transit blew over $400 million on a completely unnecessary new headquarters just a few years ago.
Kolluri and Governor Phil Murphy pushed the tired excuse that if engineers get the raise they’re demanding, the state would have to extend similar raises to other NJ Transit workers. But engineers are in a separate union from conductors and other staff—it’s a weak excuse meant to divide and delay.
As a worker myself in New York City, I know this playbook well. Metropolitan Transportation Authority bosses have repeatedly slandered us for demanding a living wage, all while enriching themselves off our labor. They left us to die when COVID hit. Our equipment constantly fails due to neglect and poor maintenance.
These workers took a strong first step—but they can go further. The fight isn’t just for better contracts. It’s for a system where we, the workers, run things. The fight is for communism.
