| 1983 SEPTA Regional Rail strike | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | March 15 – June 30, 1983 (3 months, 2 weeks and 1 day) | ||
| Location | Greater Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | ||
| Caused by | Disagreements over the terms of labor contracts between SEPTA and several labor unions previously under contract with Conrail | ||
| Methods | |||
| Resulted in | SEPTA and the unions agree to new labor contracts that largely retained seniority and fringe benefits, but included pay decreases and reduction in union positions | ||
| Parties | |||
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On March 15, 1983, employees of SEPTA Regional Rail, represented by 12 different labor unions, went on strike following the breakdown in negotiations over the terms of new labor contracts. The strike ended on June 30, after all of the unions agreed to new contracts.
The origin of the labor dispute comes from a 1981 act implemented by the federal government of the United States that ordered the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) to take over operations for several commuter rail lines in Greater Philadelphia that had previously been operated by Conrail. Starting in August 1982, SEPTA entered into negotiations with the 15 local unions representing workers on these lines over the terms of new labor contracts, but was unable to reach agreements with all but three of the unions by March 1983. On March 15, the remaining 12 unions declared a strike action, halting train operations on all lines in the system. Over the next several months, SEPTA managed to negotiate individual contracts with the unions, with the final union, representing signalmen, reaching an agreement on June 30, bringing the strike to a close after over 100 days.
The strike is the longest in SEPTA's history and coincided with similar strikes in New Jersey and New York that also stemmed from the transfer of operations from Conrail to local transit agencies. The new labor contracts largely retained seniority and fringe benefits for the union members, but instituted pay decreases and led to the reduction of 600 union jobs from the rail lines. In the long term, the strike severely hurt ridership levels for the system, which would not see pre-strike levels until 2008. Additionally, according to historian Jake Berman, the strike derailed the planned implementation of several reforms designed to increase efficiency on the Regional Rail system that would have included automated fare collection and level boarding, among other things.