NY gubernatorial candidate Blakeman blames Hochul for LIRR strike disruption
NY gubernatorial candidate calls out Hochul for LIRR strike fallout
New York gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman criticizes Gov. Kathy Hochul to lead the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) strike, accusing him of poor leadership. Blakeman points to the state's financial problems and the $60 million daily cost of the strike, which affects hundreds of thousands of commuters.
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Nassau County Executive and gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman offloaded the burden to Gov. Kathy Hochul on Sunday because of the problem of the intense strike of the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), which accuses the Democratic governor of driving New York into chaos as hundreds of thousands of commuters prepare for possible major disruptions going into this work week.
“The blame is on Kathy Hochul and her lack of leadership…” Blakeman told Lisa Boothe during Fox & Friends Weekend. “This strike should not have happened. He treats the workers as if they were workers. He does not have a good relationship with the union leaders.”
He compared Hochul's handling of labor disputes to his approach to unions.
LONG ISLAND RAIL ROAD WORKERS CONTINUE ON STRIKE, LEAVING 330,000 PASSENGERS WITHOUT SERVICE ACROSS BUSY AMERICAN JACK.
New York Republican Gubernatorial Councilman Bruce Blakeman, left, attends an anti-Semitism rally on May 10 in the Queens borough of New York City. ; Gov. Kathy Hochul, right, speaks at the Governor's office in New York as she announces a federal budget proposal to include security barriers at places where people gather to pray and a pied-à-terre tax on New York City luxury homes worth $5 million or more. (Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images; Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
He suggested that the difference comes down to leadership and respect for employees.
“I negotiate hard with our employees, but I always reach the same agreement because I look out for the families of our employees here in New York state,” Blakeman said.
This comes after five unions representing around 3,700 workers – including ticket clerks, train engineers, signalmen, electricians and machinists – walked off the job in the fourth strike in the railway's history on Saturday.
NYC HOSPITAL BLAMES NURSES ASSOCIATION FOR DEMANDING PROTECTION FOR STAFF WHICH ARRIVES DRUNK, HIGH AS STRIKE BEGINS.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul called the Long Island Rail Road strike “reckless” and “unacceptable.” (David Dee Delgado/Getty Images)
The LIRR confirmed in a statement that service has been suspended until further notice and encouraged passengers to avoid non-essential travel and work from home if possible.
“We will have a limited bus service on weekdays for essential workers and those who cannot communicate by phone,” the railways said.
Kevin Sexton, national vice president of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, said no new negotiations were planned.
“We're very far apart right now,” Sexton said. “We're really sorry we're in this situation.”
Which leads to a strike, unions and Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) negotiated a new contract that included changes to work rules and a 3% annual wage increase over three years.
The dispute was focused on raising wages in the fourth year, the unions want a 5% wage increase in the last year, which the MTA says we cannot meet.
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Blakeman also pointed out that Hochul mishandled employee relations across the board, pointing to other labor disputes under Hochul's administration.
“We had a strike by nurses, Kathy Hochul brought workers from outside the country to cut the recording lines,” he said. “We had a police strike. Kathy Hochul brought in the National Guard to break that strike.”
“And now we have the first strike by railway workers in 30 years,” he added.
Fox News Digital reached out to the governor's press office and Hochul's campaign for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Michael Sinkewicz of Fox News contributed to this report.
