Metropolitan Transportation Authority
New York, NY
see the full file on Metropolitan Transportation Authoritydocumented benefits (5)
| No experience needed | Car Appearance Maintainer / Oiler (Long Island Rail Road, Westside Yard fleet cleaning): a four-year high school diploma or GED/TASC equivalent, basic oral and written communication, and knowledge of hand tools. No prior experience required for the Car Appearance Maintainer (the Oiler variant wants 1-2 years mechanical or electrical experience). The catch is the wage progression: the $36.449 rate is the 100% rate and new hires start at 70% of it, reaching 100% only after 1,920 days of compensated service. |
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| Union contract | MTA frontline titles are union-represented and the posting names the union: LIRR Car Appearance Maintainers and Oilers are SMART Transportation Division / NCF&O; LIRR Locomotive Engineers are BLET. New York City Transit bus operators are TWU Local 100. The MTA benefits page directs represented staff to their collective bargaining agreement rather than the HR summary. |
| Paid training | PARTLY UNPAID. The LIRR Locomotive Engineer Trainee programme runs in two phases: Phase 1 is a six-week NON-COMPENSATED classroom programme attended on your own time while you stay in your existing job; Phase 2 is a minimum of 14 months of full-time compensated training at 60% of the $57.278 rate ($34.367/hour) for the first 365 days. Phase 1 hours are paid retrospectively as a one-time lump sum only once you complete Phase 1 and are promoted to Locomotive Engineer. Failing a qualifying exam means termination from the programme. |
| Promoted from within | The Locomotive Engineer route is an internal promotion path from other LIRR grades, but it carries a lock-in penalty: an employee who reverts to their former position for any reason - including failing the programme - is barred from applying for another position for two years. Entry requirement is a high school diploma or GED plus one year of trade, CDL, railroad or 24/7-industry experience. |
| Pension | The MTA offers pensions to eligible employees alongside 401(k) and 457 plans, with military service credit eligibility. The MTA's own benefits page notes that public retirement plans are administered outside the MTA and that represented staff should refer to their collective bargaining agreement, so the plan and formula are not published here. |
the legal floor where they are
Set by law, not by Metropolitan Transportation Authority. It applies to every employer in NY.
| IVF cycles the state covers | New York requires three IVF cycles, from large groups only. Insurance Law §§ 3221(k)(6)(C) and 4303(s)(3) require large group policies to cover 'three cycles of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) used to treat infertility and prescription drugs that are prescribed for the IVF treatment'. Large group means more than 100 employees, and the law applies to policies issued or renewed on or after 1 January 2020. Age restrictions are not permitted, and an insurer may not discriminate on age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status or gender identity. Small group and individual plans must cover basic infertility treatment such as intrauterine insemination but are NOT required to cover IVF. THE LIMIT THAT DECIDES WHETHER THIS REACHES YOU: the Department of Financial Services states that 'the IVF law does not apply to self-funded ERISA plans', nor to Medicaid managed care, the Essential Plan or Medicare. KFF's 2025 employer survey puts 67% of covered workers in a self-funded plan and 80% at firms of 200 or more, so at most large New York employers this law does not apply and the fertility benefit on the page is the company's own choice. (New York Insurance Law §§ 3221(k)(6)(C) and 4303(s)(3), effective 1 January 2020.) |
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| Adoption leave the law gives | 12 workweeks of UNPAID job-protected leave in any 12-month period on the placement of a child for adoption or foster care, and only for employees who meet the FMLA eligibility test. There is no federal paid adoption leave. (Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, 29 U.S.C. 2612(a)(1)(B) and 2612(c); eligibility at 29 U.S.C. 2611(2) and (4). Quoted from the 2023 edition of the US Code.) |
| Pay when you are ill | No federal law requires any paid sick leave. The FLSA does not require payment for time not worked, and the FMLA gives 12 workweeks of UNPAID job-protected leave in any 12-month period for a serious health condition, and only for employees who meet the FMLA eligibility test. Any paid sick time comes from a state or city law, or from the employer's own choice. (Fair Labor Standards Act, per the Department of Labor's statement on payment for time not worked; Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, 29 U.S.C. 2612(a)(1)(D) and 2612(c). Quoted from the 2023 edition of the US Code on govinfo.gov.) |
Every claim above is sourced and dated. See sources on the full page.
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