Establishing an Emergency Board to Investigate Disputes Between the Long Island Rail Road Company and Certain of Its Employees Represented by Certain Labor Organizations

This executive order establishes a second emergency board under the Railway Labor Act to investigate unresolved labor disputes between the Long Island Rail Road Company and certain employee unions. The board, effective March 22, 2014, must select the most reasonable final offer within 60 days of its creation, while maintaining a 60-day cooling-off period prohibiting changes to working conditions.

Federal Register Open PDF 79 FR 16647

Impact dates

Jul 20, 2014
Cooling-off period ends (60 days after report submission)
May 21, 2014
Board submits report to President selecting most reasonable offer
Apr 21, 2014
Parties submit final offers for settlement
Mar 22, 2014
Board established effective 12:01 a.m. EDT

Key directives

Establish three-member Emergency Board effective March 22, 2014
Board members must have no financial or other interest in railroad employee organizations or carriers
Parties submit final settlement offers within 30 days of Board creation
Board selects most reasonable offer and reports to President within 30 days after receiving final offers
Maintain status quo conditions for 60 days after Board submits report
Board records transferred to National Mediation Board upon termination
Board terminates automatically upon report submission

Timeline

Immediate

Board established effective March 22, 2014 at 12:01 a.m. EDT
Cooling-off period begins (no changes to conditions allowed)

Near term (90d)

Parties submit final offers within 30 days of Board creation (by April 21, 2014)
Board submits report selecting most reasonable offer within 30 days after final offers (by May 21, 2014)
Board terminates upon report submission
Cooling-off period ends 60 days after report submission (approximately July 20, 2014)

Long term

Potential for renewed negotiations or self-help actions after cooling-off period expires if disputes remain unresolved

Risks & tensions

Previous emergency board failed to resolve disputes; this second board is a procedural escalation under RLA section 9A
If parties reject this board's selection, strike or lockout becomes possible after cooling-off period expires
Vague whether 'most reasonable offer' standard provides meaningful resolution or merely delays confrontation
Commuter rail service disruption risk for New York metropolitan area if disputes ultimately unresolved