By Alfonso A. Castillo, Newsday; April 30, 2019
A new report by a fiscal watchdog group calls on the MTA and its unions to work together in their next contract negotiations to reduce skyrocketing labor costs that are on pace to consume three-fifths of the agency’s operating budget.
The report, titled “Reform at the Bargaining Table,” from the nonprofit Citizens Budget Commission, or CBC, provides several recommendations on ways to shrink labor costs while still offering fair raises to workers, including by offering incentives for increased productivity, requiring union workers to contribute more to their health insurance plans, and changing work rules that force the MTA to make “penalty payments” for certain assignments.