Establishing a Second Emergency Board To Investigate Disputes Between the Long Island Rail Road Company and Certain of Its Employees Represented by Certain Labor Organizations
Establishes a second three-member emergency board to investigate unresolved labor disputes between the Long Island Rail Road and five labor unions, following the failure of an earlier board's recommendations to gain full acceptance.
Creates a final-offer selection process under the Railway Labor Act: each party submits its best settlement offer and the board picks the most reasonable one, while freezing working conditions during the review period.
What this order does
What it orders
The order establishes, effective January 16, 2026, a second emergency board composed of a presidentially appointed chair and two other members to investigate labor disputes between the Long Island Rail Road Company and five unions: the Transportation Communications Union, Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. It directs the parties to submit final settlement offers to the board within 30 days of its creation, and requires the board to select the most reasonable offer and report to the President within 30 days after receiving those offers.
It also prohibits any party from changing the conditions underlying the dispute from the time of the request until 60 days after the board submits its report. The board terminates automatically upon submitting that report, and its records transfer to the National Mediation Board. Publication costs are assigned to the Department of Transportation.
Who it affects
The Long Island Rail Road Company, its employees represented by the five named labor unions, and the three presidentially appointed board members. Federal agencies involved include the National Mediation Board (records custody) and Department of Transportation (publication costs).
Why it matters
Rail workers and the Long Island Rail Road are legally frozen in their current working conditions while the board deliberates, preventing unilateral changes or a work stoppage. The board's final-offer selection process creates a binding path toward resolution that affects rail service for commuters in the New York metro area.
What must happen and when
How the order is supposed to work
The board operates in two sequential 30-day windows: parties first submit final settlement offers, then the board picks the most reasonable one and reports to the President. A status-quo freeze runs from the date of the request through 60 days after the report, preventing strikes or lockouts during that period. The board has no independent enforcement power beyond the RLA's statutory framework. Upon termination, records move to the National Mediation Board, and the Department of Transportation absorbs publication costs.
Actions and deadlines
- Parties to the disputes submit final offers for settlement to the Board
- Board submits report to the President selecting the most reasonable settlement offer
- Parties maintain status quo conditions with no unilateral changes
- National Mediation Board takes physical custody of Board records upon termination