COMMUTER RAIL CONDUCTORS RATIFY NEW CONTRACT WITH KEOLIS

Updated agreements include sick time and pay increases

May 5, 2025 (BOSTON) - Keolis Commuter Services (Keolis) has announced that the SMART Transportation Division (SMART TD) union, which represents MBTA Commuter Rail conductors, has ratified their new contract. The agreements will be retroactive to July 1, 2023, when the contract first became amendable. Keolis has reached updated agreements with 12 of its 14 unions, representing nearly 2000 members of the Commuter Rail workforce.  

“Keolis is pleased that the SMART TD union has ratified their updated contract” said Abdellah Chajai, CEO and General Manager of Keolis Commuter Services.  “Notably, the agreement includes pay increases as well as sick time for conductors. Keolis wants to ensure that the railroad continues to be a place where people can develop a career, and we are proud of the contract we were able to secure.” 

“This is an outstanding contract for SMART TD members,” said Rick Pauli, General Chairman of SMART TD. “I would like to give credit to Cole Czub and Ken Owens, Local Chairmen of the North and South Side Conductors, for working hard for their members in coming to this agreement.”

Keolis has ratified and settled agreements with the following unions: Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET), American Railway and Airway Supervisors Association (ARASA), Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division (BMWED), Brotherhood of Railway Carmen (BRC), Brotherhood of Railway Signalmen (BRS), International Brotherhood of Boilermakers (IBB), Transportation Communications Union (TCU), Transport Workers Union (TWU), International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail Transportation Workers (SMART Sheet Metal), International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail Transportation Workers (SMART TD), National Conference of Firemen and Oilers (NCFO),  and the International Association of Machinists (IAM).  
 
Keolis Commuter Services has operated and maintained the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s commuter rail system, the sixth largest commuter rail operation in North America, for over ten years. KCS is a subsidiary of Keolis North America (KNA), both headquartered in Boston, and employs approximately 2,500 people throughout the region. KCS and KNA are part of Keolis Group, an innovative global leader in transit services with more than a century of passenger transportation experience and operations in 13 countries.  

###