L.A. Metro approves new labor contract with SMART

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (L.A. Metro) yesterday announced the approval of a new five-year contract with the Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers Union.

SMART represents rail and bus operators and scheduling analysts at L.A. Metro. The agreement "ensures fair and equitable labor costs for both the agency and for [its] employees and their families," L.A. Metro officials said in a press release.

The new contract sets a starting rate of $23 an hour for full-time operators, an increase from the current $20.49, with the top hourly rate increasing to $42.07 from $33.21. The time it takes to get to the top rate was also reduced from 11 to five years. Pay adjustments will be retroactive to July 1.

"This new agreement with SMART provides our bus and rail operators with competitive salaries and benefits, helping us to improve retention, grow our operator ranks, and improve performance to deliver a transit experience that exceeds our customers’ expectations," said L.A. Metro CEO Stephanie Wiggins.

The agreement enables the L.A. Metro to hire more full-time train and bus operators, which will provide the transit agency more scheduling flexibility.

To accommodate the contract, L.A. Metro will require a budget increase of $46.5 million, or 0.5% of its fiscal-year 2023 budget of $8.8 billion.