SAN JOSE — The union representing Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority workers was voting Tuesday on a new contract offer from the transit agency.

The vote on a new contract came more than two months after the workers were ordered back onto the job by a Santa Clara County judge after conducting a historic strike that lasted more than two weeks.

Members of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 265 could vote on whether to accept the contract in an election held between 4 a.m. and 10 p.m. Tuesday, according to an information sheet on the union’s website.

The new contract offer would provide a 14.5% raise over four years, according to a press release from VTA. The raise would be broken down into 4% in the first year, 3.5% in the second year, 3% in the third year and 4% in the fourth year.

The contract also offers enhanced dental care, apparel vouchers and revised workplace policies, the agency said. This is the first contract offer that has reached a vote since the end of the strike, said VTA spokesperson Stacey Hendler Ross.

“We think it’s extremely important for this contract situation to come to a settlement and an agreement. We want our employees to be able to take advantage of the fair and competitive contract that we’re offering,” Hendler Ross said. “They’ve been three months now without a raise, and it doesn’t benefit any of us to have this dragged out.”

The agency added that the updated offer balances employee needs and the agency’s budget constraints.

Jesus Iboa, ATU Local 265 vice president, said that the results of the vote will largely be influenced by members wanting a raise as soon as possible, as new contracts do not provide retroactive pay, and by those facing fatigue over continued negotiations. He also noted that some members feel upset and insulted that the negotiations to get this offer took so long.

The negotiation experience left a bad taste for future interactions, he added.

“Being forced back to work and the way we were treated, the damages and the ramifications from that itself was going to be everlasting,” Iboa said. “You can’t put a price on that.”

Iboa added that leadership has not provided a recommendation for how to vote and is leaving the decision to membership.

The VTA is facing a budget deficit of $46.8 million for fiscal year 2025. Sales tax revenues, which make up about 85% of the VTA’s funding, have been on the decline. The agency is projected to have budget deficits for the next five years.

ATU members walked off the job March 10 after negotiations with the transit agency reached an impasse over the size of a raise and other issues such as an arbitration clause. The union originally asked for a raise of 18% over three years while the agency offered 9% over three years.

The strike followed seven months of negotiations for a new contract. It marked the first strike in the agency’s 30-year history.

The workers returned to their jobs without a contract after a judge ordered them to on March 26. Since then, union members have been working on an expired contract.

If the contract is approved by the union, it will then go to the VTA Board of Directors to be approved, the agency said.