With just two months remaining before a potential work stoppage, officials at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority(MTA) say they are preparing contingency plans in the event of a Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) strike.

The warning comes amid an ongoing labor dispute between the railroad and five of its unions, raising concerns that train service could come to a sudden halt as early as mid-May.

In a statement, MTA Chief Labor and Employee Relations Officer Anita Miller said the agency is bracing for the possibility of a work stoppage if negotiations fail to progress.

“If these unions decline to begin good-faith negotiations, the LIRR will have no choice but to prepare for a needless work stoppage that would only hurt both riders and workers,” Miller said.

The announcement follows a decision by a presidential emergency board, which for the second time sided with union leaders in the dispute. The board concluded that the unions’ final proposal was the most reasonable offer on the table.

At the center of the disagreement is pay and work rules. Union representatives are seeking a 14.5% wage increase over four years. The MTA has countered with a 12.5% raise over the same period, along with an additional 1.5% increase tied to changes in certain work rules.

One of the key sticking points involves extra pay for engineers. Currently, engineers receive an additional eight hours of pay if they operate both diesel and electric trains during the same shift, or if they perform both passenger service and rail-yard duties in the same shift. Under the MTA’s latest proposal, that additional compensation would be reduced to one hour.

If the two sides fail to reach a deal, a strike could begin as early as May 16.