SEPTA to ask Obama for new negotiations board

SEPTA officials are requesting a second presidential emergency board to mediate negotiations with a union critical to the authority’s regional railway service.

Another 120-day presidential emergency board would push back any potential strike until February. The current board’s term expires at 12:01 a.m. on Oct. 13. Another board would require SEPTA and its locomotive engineers to maintain operations until mid-February.

SEPTA spokesman Andrew Busch said the authority is set to negotiate with the Brotherhood of Local Engineers and Trainmen Division 71 on Monday. He said SEPTA believes a settlement is close.

“If for some reason we’re not able to reach a settlement ... we’ll ask for a second (PEB), which is what the law allows,” Busch said.

The request must be approved by President Barack Obama, who authorized the first board in June at the request of Gov. Tom Corbett. The board, which offers recommendations, led to SEPTA settling with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 744, a group that also works on the regional railways.

Busch said a settlement is close with the locomotive engineers. He declined to offer particulars, saying the authority prefers to negotiate at the table.

“We do believe we can get an agreement when we meet next week,” Busch said.

The locomotive workers have been working without a contract since 2010. Efforts to reach a union leader were unsuccessful.

Source: Delaware County Times