November 27, 2013
By Stephanie West
The National Conference of Firemen and Oilers (NCFO) on November 21, 2013 was notified by the National Mediation Board (NMB), that the President has signed an Executive Order, effective November 22, 2013 creating Emergency Board under the provisions of Section 9a of the Railway Labor Act, to investigate the dispute between the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and its employees represented by the National Conference of Firemen & Oilers, 32BJ, SEIU.
In accordance with the provisions of Section 9a, after the creation of such Board and for one hundred and twenty days, a cooling off period is mandated in this dispute.
The White House released the following statement, “The Presidential Emergency Board will provide a structure for the two sides to resolve their disagreements. The Presidential Emergency Board will hear evidence and, within 30 days, will deliver a report to the President recommending how the dispute should be resolved”.
The NCFO is part of a bargaining coalition and the other members of the bargaining coalition are, SMART (the United Transportation Union and the Sheet Metal Workers International Union) and the Transportation Communications Union.
