SEPTA and the union representing its transit police officers have agreed to a tentative contract, likely preventing a strike that could have occurred as Philadelphia welcomes crowds for the FIFA World Cup and the nation’s 250th birthday.
Earlier this month, Fraternal Order of Transit Police Lodge 109 officials urged the authority to agree to binding arbitration, saying at the time that a strike this summer was becoming "increasingly likely.” The process is used in contracts for Philadelphia police officers and firefighters, who are prohibited from walking off the job.
SEPTA is not required to go through arbitration, and the sides ultimately signed off on a deal at the negotiating table with a pay increase of 12% over three years, authority spokesperson Andrew Busch told Metro.
“The safety and security of our riders and employees is SEPTA’s top priority, and that starts with the hard work of our Transit Police officers,” SEPTA General Manager Scott Sauer said in a statement. “We are pleased to have a tentative agreement that is fair to our current officers, and will continue to make a career with the SEPTA Transit Police attractive to new recruits.”
Officers covered under the agreement are set to get a $2,500 bonus, a 5% salary bump in the first year and a 3.5% increase in each of the final two years, according to Busch. He said the terms were modeled on recent contracts with Transport Workers Local 234, SEPTA’s largest union.
FOTP Lodge 109 includes more than 200 SEPTA officers. Transit police staffing is at its highest in more than a decade, and the authority has worked to make the job competitive with other law enforcement careers, Busch said.
If union members ratify the tentative contract, the agreement will go before the SEPTA board for final approval at its June 25 meeting.
“I want to thank the negotiators on both sides for their tireless efforts and professionalism throughout this bargaining process,” board chair Kenneth E. Lawrence Jr. said in a statement. “The SEPTA Board looks forward to considering the agreement following the ratification process.”
Lodge 109’s existing contract expired March 31, and officers voted to authorize a strike in February. Transit police hit the picket lines for three days in December 2023, and they also walked off the job in 2019 and 2012.
“We have been committed to negotiating in good faith to reach an agreement that is fair to the hardworking men and women of the SEPTA Transit Police Department,” union president Omari Bervine said. “I want to thank the negotiators for their diligence, and also SEPTA General Manager Scott Sauer for his role in helping us reach a resolution.”
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