SEPTA and Transport Workers Union Local 234 reached a tentative labor agreement Monday that, if ratified, would avert a strike in Philadelphia. The new deal means SEPTA buses, trains and trolleys will keep running in the city.

The Philadelphia-based transit authority and TWU Local 234 tentatively agreed to a new contract Monday to stave off what could have been a devastating strike for thousands of riders.

TWU Local 234 members have been working without a contract since Nov. 7, and members voted to authorize a strike last month. The union, the largest representing SEPTA employees, serves 5,000 subway, trolley and bus operators and mechanics.  

What's in the deal?

TWU Local 234 and the transit agency reached a tentative two-year contract Monday that includes a 3.5% wage increase each year and increases in pension benefits, night differential pay and health benefits for new employees. New employees would have their vision and dental benefits start after 90 days instead of after 15 months of employment under the agreement.

The union said the night differential increase is the first since 1995. The agreement states the night shift premium would jump from 15 cents to $1. Tool and clothing allowances would also increase under the contract by $5.

TWU Local 234 President Will Vera said in a statement that the agreement will make "a SEPTA job attractive again."

"I am very pleased that we were able to settle without a strike," Vera said. "Our members had worked without a contract for the past month. Patience was growing thin and management seemed unhurried."

The union would have to ratify the new agreement later this month. SEPTA General Manager Scott Sauer hopes the union will approve the deal by this week so the transit agency can present it to its board on Thursday, Dec. 18.

The tentative deal also establishes an absence management program that Sauer says will allow SEPTA to better manage absenteeism. Sauer also said the agreement changes a number of work rules and procedural changes.

"We spent the weekend, and we finally reached a deal this morning," Sauer said.

The union sought better wages and sick pay, pension increases and better health care, as well as a two-year deal rather than going year to year, as they have been since 2023.

TWU Local 234 members last went on strike in 2016, a standoff that ended after six days. SEPTA and the union averted a strike in 2023 and 2024 with one-year deals.

Full text of the tentative deal can be read online.

How the sides came together

The agreement comes days after a strike appeared imminent. Union leaders warned Friday their members were on the verge of striking after negotiations appeared stalled. A strike would have ground the city to a halt as hundreds of thousands of Philadelphians rely on SEPTA daily.

Cooler heads prevailed over the weekend. SEPTA and union representatives said they resumed negotiations Monday after what the transit authority called a "productive" weekend of discussions. SEPTA service ran on a normal schedule Monday.

"Any time the union sets a tone that they're intending to walk out, we're close," Sauer said. "I don't ever think they're bluffing. We go into these discussions knowing, especially after they get their authorization vote, that that's always a chance, but certainly we wanted to avoid that at all costs."

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's office also got involved with the negotiations over the weekend. Union representatives met with senior SEPTA officials at Shapiro's Philadelphia office, where they said "significant progress was made toward a contract settlement."

"Gov. Shapiro was instrumental in preventing a strike that could have started as soon as Monday morning. We're grateful for his close involvement and support," TWU Local 234 President Will Vera said in a statement Sunday.

Sauer said the governor initiated contact.

"Gov. Shapiro kept everyone at the table over the weekend and as a result, both sides have reached a fair deal for the hardworking men and women who keep SEPTA running every day, preventing service interruptions for the Philadelphia region," a spokesperson for Shapiro said in a statement. "The governor is going to continue to bring people together to get stuff done for the commonwealth and support critical mass transit systems like SEPTA to ensure Pennsylvanians can safely get where they need to go."

What's next for SEPTA?

For SEPTA, a strike would have been the latest setback in what has been a difficult year that has seen funding and reliability challenges. Regional Rail service has been disrupted after federally mandated inspections and repairs on its Silverliner IV rail cars. Shapiro flexed nearly $220 million in capital funds to the transit agency on Nov. 24 for safety and infrastructure improvements.

"Everybody knows the year that we've had," Sauer said. "We didn't need a strike also to be one more thing our customers had to deal with."

Sauer said he hopes averting a strike marks a turning point for SEPTA.

"I'm going to view this now as a springboard to turning a corner in '26, where customers can begin to rely more on a safer, more reliable, more customer-centric SEPTA,' Sauer said. "Now that we have two years of labor peace, if you will, with our largest union, I know they're eager to turn that corner as well. So I think this is a good step for everybody."

SEPTA is also in contract negotiations with SMART Local 1594, which represents more than 300 bus, train and trolley operators in Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties. SMART Local 1594 members voted to authorize a strike on Nov. 21.

"TWU presents the pattern," Sauer said. "We will present similar contracts to each of the remaining unions, and we will go through discussions there."

SMART Local 1594 representatives told CBS News Philadelphia that they're pleased with the TWU Local 234 deal and hope to have a similar outcome.