IBEW Ratifies Contract at New Orleans RTA

“Today, we announced our new four-year agreement with the local chapter of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) at the Carrollton Streetcar Barn,” RTA reported in a Sept. 7 Facebook post. “We are excited to continue to partner with our skilled workforce who maintain our buildings and fleet, which allows the RTA to deliver world class transit!” (RTA Photograph)

New Orleans Regional Transit Authority (RTA) on Sept. 7 reported the ratification of a new four-year agreement with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 1700-4.

The agreement, effective through June 30, 2027, applies to the 167 represented streetcar, bus, and paratransit mechanics, custodians, groundskeepers, rail technician machinists, building engineers, fleet technology technicians, and carpenters, including the master craftsmen who build and maintain RTA’s fleet of historic streetcars and catenary system.

The RTA IBEW-represented employees will receive:

• Wage rate increases of 4% (starting July 2023), 3% (starting July 2024), 2.5% (starting July 2025), and 2.5% (starting July 2026).
• Addition of two holidays: Memorial Day (effective calendar year 2024) and Juneteenth (effective calendar year 2023)
• 457 Retirement Plan employer match for every dollar deferred up to 6% of eligible compensation for new hires as of Dec. 20, 2020.
• Provides training and recertification bonuses for all eligible skilled positions at $1,000 per year per employee for each type of bonus effective in 2024 and 2025, respectively.
• Increases in-sick leave entitlement for employees hired after July 1, 2015, from 5.34 hours per month to eight hours per month.
• Emergency pay for employees assigned to work during major weather events or other RTA-declared emergencies at a rate of two times the employee’s regular rate.

“This agreement demonstrates our continued commitment to our workforce,” RTA CEO Lona Edwards Hankins said. “As the agency works to improve the reliability of our fleet and improve the quality of our facilities portfolio, largely stemming from deferred maintenance, and the impacts of Hurricane Katrina, the membership of IBEW remains a critical partner in delivering the high-quality transit service that New Orleans deserves.”

Added Darius Hollins, President, IBEW Local 1700-4: “The IBEW family would like to thank Lona Edwards Hankins, CEO, and her staff along with the federal mediator Stephanie Collier, along with my negotiating crew of Darian Epps, Harold Parker, and Kimberlin Young. Thanks also to Brian Lala. Without these folks we wouldn’t have the great outcome of this contract.”