Dependent Eligibility Verification Audit (DEVA) 

Every year, the MTA conducts an audit to verify the eligibility of employees’ dependents for medical and supplemental benefits.

You should have received a letter in the mail from the MTA asking you to confirm the information for everyone currently covered under your benefits plan, including whether any dependent has other primary health coverage.

This is NOT something you should ignore.

The MTA has advised that if you fail to respond to this request, your medical and supplemental benefits — and those of your family — may be terminated.

I have just received the list from the MTA of members who have not yet responded, and unfortunately, that list is very long.

If you are on that list, you need to take action NOW.

If you received this letter and it is still sitting at home, complete the required form and return it to the MTA ASAP. Do not wait until the last minute.

Your health benefits and your family’s coverage are too important to risk losing because a form wasn’t completed.

PLEASE TAKE CARE OF THIS IMMEDIATELY!

Philip Valenti, President

A special thanks to all of you that will be on the job September 7, 2026 working for the NYC Transit Authority, MaBSTOA and MTA Bus. Everyone knows, in the city that never sleeps it’s the Transit system and Transit employees that never stops working.

To those of you that will be off enjoying this unofficial last weekend of summer, I hope you make it a great one! And I hope you get a chance to spend time relaxing with your family…You earned it!

IN MEMORIAM

In a tragic accident last night on the D subway line at 161st Street in the Bronx, Transit Worker Moet McMullum was struck and killed by a train while performing flagging duties.

This heartbreaking tragedy is a solemn reminder of the dangers our transit workers face every day while working in the NYC subway system. These men and women put their lives on the line to keep New York moving, and we must never take their sacrifice for granted.

On behalf of TWU Local 106, we extend our deepest prayers and condolences to Sister McMullum’s family, friends, coworkers, and all of her brothers and sisters in the transit workforce.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 3, 2026
Contact: Team Saritha
Email: Press@SarithaForNewYork.com

A 30-year-old transit worker tried to stop a man who was urinating on the platform at Times Square Station, when the man slashed the transit worker multiple times and escaped on the next train. 

This is not the first time something like this has happened. Every year, thousands of transit workers are assaulted and harassed just for doing their jobs.

The union has called for tougher penalties for transit crime. So I worked with legislators to write a bill that imposes tougher penalties. 

The union has said criminals like this deserve to go to jail. So I announced a Transit Crime Strike Force to prosecute criminals like this and put them in jail. 

Here is my message to the Transit Workers of New York: 

I see the conditions you are working in every day. You are on the frontlines of our public safety crisis — you spend every day dealing with the homeless, the mentally ill, the drug addicted, and the repeat offenders. It’s not fair and it’s not safe. I will prosecute transit crime, remove repeat and violent offenders from the transit systems, and stop fare evasion. Doing so will make the trains and buses safer for workers and riders. 

That is why TWU Local 106 and TWU Local 252 have endorsed my campaign for Attorney General, and I’m honored to have their support. 

All transit workers have the option to vote for someone who is going to make your workplace safer this November. I am the only candidate in this race even talking about transit safety, and I am the only one who will do something about it. Join me, and together we will create a safer, more affordable New York. 

Saritha Komatireddy is a candidate for New York Attorney General.

• The MSII contract is basically done we are just waiting to resolve one issue that is somewhat minor.

• On the (3) Buses contracts, Transit dropped their demands on resumes at the BCC. That BCC issue caused this delay, so now that resumes are off the table negotiations should be moving again. We were warned though, that a BCC arbitration decision from several years ago that was not implemented will be implemented for 2027.

In a recent post, I warned you about how the Transit Authority is doing business with its unions: no deals and no mercy for anyone.

Make one mistake, and management will seek to fire you—regardless of your spotless record, years of service, or history as a dedicated Transit employee.

Well, we just received an arbitration decision yesterday involving one of our members who was held out of work without pay since July 10, 2026, suspended and facing dismissal.

The Arbitrator reinstated our member, imposed a five-day suspension without pay, and awarded him full back pay for all other time lost—approximately $15,000.

So let’s look at what this means.

The employee will now receive approximately $15,000 in back pay for being kept out of work. And the position he normally worked was covered by overtime during the entire period.

Based on that, it is reasonable to estimate that this unnecessary suspension could ultimately cost New York taxpayers approximately $40,000.

And for what?

This is what happens when MTA Labor Relations can make decisions with other people’s money. They don’t personally pay the price when they make a bad decision. The taxpayers do.

There has to be accountability.

Labor Relations should be looking for fair and reasonable outcomes that protect the Authority, its employees and the taxpayers—not pursuing discipline simply because they can.

When management loses an arbitration case, the bill doesn’t come out of their pockets. It comes out of ours.

This isn’t about giving employees a free pass when they make mistakes. It’s about fairness, proportionality, good judgment and responsible use of public money.

TWU Local 106 will continue to fight for our members—and we will continue to expose the cost of bad decisions made by the MTA.

Philip Valenti, President

TWU Local 106 has been out front supporting Bruce Blakeman because we know that not only is Bruce Blakeman going to win in November, we also know that New York needs a strong leader in Albany not a weakling that’s too afraid to stand up to the radical DSA that took over, and is now running the Democratic party.

We need a Governor who will lower the costs of living for New Yorkers and hold the MTA accountable. Most importantly, we need a Governor who will take care of MTA workers—not one that believes she’s entitled to the union support just because she is a Democrat.

Unlike Kathy Hochul, we believe Bruce Blakeman will bring the strength, leadership, and support that New York’s City Transit workers deserve.

TWU Local 106 is proud to support Bruce Blakeman for Governor of New York 2026

TWU Local 106 is also proud to support Chris Tague for NY Senate and Peter Oberacker US Congress

Let me take a minute of your time to give you a quick update on where we are with the MaBSTOA, Queens and MTA Bus contracts. We have not had a meeting with management in a while, primarily because of management’s summer vacation schedules. We expect negotiations to get moving again shortly. However, as I have said several times already, what caused these contracts to be dragged out: management’s demands regarding the Bus Command Center (BCC).

Those demands were unexceptable and we could not agree to the proposed changes they wanted.

As soon as negotiations resume and there is something meaningful to report, we will keep the membership informed.

We are ready to get back to the table. We are ready to negotiate. But we will not agree to unacceptable demands just to get a contract signed.

Philip Valenti, President

Last week, we met with the Authority to discuss the draft contract MOU that was sent to us several weeks ago. Unfortunately, the meeting itself was delayed because of scheduled management vacations.

When we received the MOU, we were extremely disappointed. Several items that had been part of our negotiations and, in our opinion, had previously been agreed to were removed from the draft agreement. We went into last week’s meeting prepared to make the case for putting those provisions back into the MOU.

Unfortunately, the meeting was disappointing. On many of the issues we wanted restored, management refused to move from its current position. There are, however, a few remaining items that are still under discussion, and we expect to receive an updated MOU sometime this week.

Once again, scheduled vacations on the management side are likely to slow the process down. While we cannot control management’s calendar, we can control how hard we continue to push—and we will continue pushing.

We will stay on top of this process, continue pressing the Authority, and work to get the MSII contract wrapped up as soon as possible.

Philip Valenti, President

Governor Hochul has twice vetoed the Transit Death Gamble Bill—first in 2024 and again in 2025.

The TSO took a bill that had been sitting in Albany for years without gaining any real traction and turned it into a legislative priority. We fought to get the Death Gamble Bill through the New York State Senate and Assembly, and twice it passed both houses—only to reach Governor Hochul’s desk and be vetoed.

For transit workers who continue working beyond the point when they could retire, these vetoes are not simply political decisions—they can have devastating consequences. Every day a transit worker continues to work, they are putting their lives on the line while also facing the possibility that their pension benefits could be jeopardized if they die before retirement.

The Death Gamble Bill is one of the most important pieces of legislation ever created for New York’s transit workforce. It was designed to protect the pensions and families of workers who dedicate their careers to keeping New York moving.

Yet Governor Hochul vetoed it twice.

That tells transit workers everything they need to know about where she stands when it comes to protecting the men and women who risk their lives every day to keep the system running.

Transit workers deserve better. Their families deserve better. And their pensions deserve protection.

$4 BILLION FOR MAMDANI — BUT NOTHING FOR TRANSIT WORKERS?

All of this nonsense becomes even more outrageous when you look at where Governor Kathy Hochul is willing to find billions of dollars.

Hochul just delivered another $4 BILLION in state assistance to New York City, helping Mayor Zohran Mamdani close his budget gap. That brings the total new state assistance to nearly $8 billion over two years.

Yet when it comes to Transit Workers who have spent decades working dangerous, demanding jobs and putting their retirement security on the line, suddenly there is no money.

Think about that.

Hochul can find $4 billion to help bail out New York City’s budget, but she can’t find the resources to protect the retirement security of the Transit Workers who keep this city moving every single day.

Transit Workers aren’t asking for a handout.

They’re asking for fair treatment, retirement security and protection for the people who have dedicated their careers to serving New York.

Governor Hochul has made her priorities clear.

Billions for City Hall.
Excuses for Transit Workers.

That’s not a budget problem.

That’s a priority problem.

Philip Valenti, President