Commuter Rail: No Strike but No Smiles

Commuter rail workers demanding higher wages and more affordable health insurance from their employer rallied outside South Station during the Wednesday morning commute, aiming to alert riders about their ongoing labor fight.

U.S. Reps. Ayanna Pressley, Seth Moulton and Stephen Lynch, as well as state Sen. Brendan Crighton, joined in solidarity with roughly 100 commuter rail workers as they sought to apply pressure on Keolis Commuter Services, which operates 14 rail lines in Greater Boston and Rhode Island. Workers say their contracts expired more than two years ago.

The workers do not intend to strike and cause service disruptions, said Jonathan Clark, president of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) Local 318. Clark described the gathering as an "informational rally," featuring a coalition of unions representing other commuter rail workers with expired contracts. 

"It's all walks of life from maintenance of way workers, to signal electricians, to car inspectors," Clark said.

Negotiations have been ongoing for the past year, and Clark said workers are bristling at Keolis's proposal to raise insurance costs by 30 percent over five years while boosting wages by 25 percent.

"We wouldn't profit at all -- we would have no increase," Clark said.

Keolis did not immediately respond to a News Service inquiry.