in effect
This is a presidential executive order issued September 16, 2025, creating a three-person federal Emergency Board under the Railway Labor Act to investigate unresolved contract disputes between the Long Island Rail Road and five of its labor unions. The order was required by law: when parties covered by the Railway Labor Act request such a board and prior negotiations have failed, the President must appoint one.
The Emergency Board became active at 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on September 18, 2025, and must deliver a written report to the President within 30 days of that date. For 120 days from September 18, 2025, neither the railroad nor the unions may change any of the working conditions that are at the center of the disputes, unless both sides agree to the change — effectively freezing the status quo and preventing a strike or lockout during that window. The three board members, appointed by the President, must have no financial or other personal interest in either railroad management or any railroad labor organization. After the board submits its report, it dissolves, and its records transfer to the National Mediation Board for storage. The Department of Transportation bears the cost of publishing this order.
The Long Island Rail Road and its employees represented by five unions — the Transportation Communications Union, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers — are directly bound by the 120-day status-quo requirement and are the subject of the board’s investigation. Commuters and others who depend on Long Island Rail Road service are indirectly affected, as the order prevents a work stoppage during the investigation period.