A New Year's Message from the President

I want to wish the members of Local 100 a very Happy New Year.

You successfully transported more than a billion riders in 2025, from New Yorkers on the subways and buses to residents of Westchester on the private lines, children going to and from school in Connecticut to tourists in Central Park horse carriages and tour buses in San Francisco.

Last year saw public transit in New York bouncing back even more from the pandemic that began six years ago, with post-pandemic ridership on subways reaching new heights again and again, and that’s thanks to your hard work and dedication.

There were many accomplishments to be celebrated, from acts of bravery and extraordinary service by individual members to our collective work to move New York and beyond—you have shown up every single day, including holidays, to get people where they need to go safely and reliably, and you should take great pride in that.

But I want to shift our focus to the year ahead: 2026 is going to be a hugely significant for Local 100. It’s a contract year, with our current contract expiring on May 16. What that means for us is that this is a year to unite as never before and stand shoulder to shoulder as we fight for what we deserve. That can only happen when we come together and work alongside each other for our common goal.

In the coming months, you will be asked to show up for yourselves and your brothers and sisters as reliably as you show up to the job, and act on that pride you rightly take in your work to band together and demand a fair contract, one that reflects the integral role we play in millions of peoples’ lives each day.

The mission begins in just a few weeks at the Mass Membership Meeting, which will be held at the Jacob Javits Center on Saturday, January 24. It’s been a few years since our last one, and this is a pivotal time for us to gather together, take stock of where we are and think about what’s coming next.

I will be calling on you over the next weeks and months to take part in this event and other undertakings, and I hope you will answer the call—for yourselves and for your brothers and sisters. The most basic function of a union is to stand together, because we all know we are stronger together.

When we fight, we win.

In solidarity,

John V. Chiarello