July 07, 2026
Jon Tuleya/For PhillyVoice
About 1,600 members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 614 will receive annual wage increases and cash-balance pension plans as part of a new contract agreement reached with PECO on Monday night.
PECO and its unionized workers reached a tentative, five-year contract agreement Monday night, ending the first strike in the utility's 145-year history.
About 1,600 members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 614 walked off the job Saturday. Its leaders called the deal a "landmark contract," saying it contains cash-balance pension plans, full medical coverage for retired members and "significant" wage increases for line workers, technicians and customer service representatives.
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Amid the strike, tens of thousands of PECO customers experienced outages caused by widespread flash floods and record-breaking heat.
Larry Anastasi, president and business manager of IBEW Local 614, called the agreement a "historic win." Line workers and gas technicians will receive 4% annual raises during the first four years of the contract and a 4.5% increase during the fifth year. Call center workers will get 3% annual wage increases, the union said.
"We said from day one that our members' top priorities were restoring pensions and retirement medical coverage for all members, and we won that and more," he said Monday in a statement. "For years, PECO has disrespected, devalued and denigrated the men and women who keep the lights on and gas flowing. Management stole our pensions, eroded our medical benefits and exploited our wages while jacking up rates, recording record profits and skimming the fat for the C-suite. This contract begins to right those wrongs."
Under the deal, Local 614 members also will be able to choose their preferred healthcare providers for medical certifications and receive improved pay rates for work outside of their job requirements, the union said. Call center workers will receive 24-hour notice before mandatory overtime.
PECO said the labor deal is a reflection of its employees' "important contribution" and the shared commitments of fostering a safe work environment and delivering reliable service.
"We value our long-standing relationship with IBEW Local 614 and appreciate the efforts of both bargaining teams in reaching this agreement," the company said in a statement. "The proposed contract recognizes the contributions of our employees while supporting our responsibility to deliver reliable, affordable service across southeastern Pennsylvania."
IBEW Local 614 said a ratification date has not yet been scheduled. Members will return to work starting Wednesday.
IBEW Local 614 members had been working without a contract since the end of March. Negotiations had been ongoing since January, with the union seeking higher wages and improved healthcare and retirement benefits.
Talks between the utility and the union continued over the holiday weekend, when severe weather left many PECO customers without power.
While its unionized technicians were on strike, PECO utilized outside contractors, field workers from other states and PECO workers that were not on strike to restore service to impacted customers. The utility said it reduced the number of outages from 57,000 to less than 6,000 in 24 hours.
"Our three-day strike showed just how much PECO needs Local 614," Anastasi said Monday. "Without our labor, our expertise and our experience, PECO saw widespread outages that they were slow to address. We are not easily replaced. We feel deep appreciation for the ratepayers and the public, whose support for our members never wavered, even in the heat and the storms."
