Subway and bus workers with New York City’s largest transit union went to work Tuesday without a contract, after the previous collective bargaining agreement expired at midnight.

An MTA spokesperson confirmed the ongoing negotiations Tuesday, and said subway and bus service would continue as normal. The state’s Taylor Law forbids public employees from striking; it also requires that the MTA not roll back protections from the now-expired contract until a new one is signed.

“Right now, there are several stumbling blocks,” Transport Workers Union Local 100 president Richard Davis said in a Monday night statement.

“The MTA is showing a lack of respect for our members on issues big and small.”

The union, which represents some 40,000 bus and subway workers, entered negotiations last month demanding higher wages, better health benefits, and an improved pension.

The union - which lost 117 members to COVID-19 during the early days of the pandemic - also came to the table seeking lifetime health benefits for dependents of those killed by COVID.

Davis singled out that and another healthcare demand among the stumbling blocks Monday.

“MTA Chairman Janno Lieber is refusing to pick up the cost of healthcare coverage for the families of our fallen heroes who worked during the pandemic, contracted COVID-19, and died,” Davis said. “The MTA also is resisting our demand to pay for therapy for the autistic children of our members.”

He added, “These are just two examples.”

In a statement Tuesday, the MTA expressed a willingness to negotiate wages, but did not address the union’s other demands.

“We value the transit work force that kept New York moving during COVID,” Shanifah Rieara, an MTA senior policy adviser said in a statement. “They deserve a raise and we are trying to work out increases consistent with the approved state budget, and in line with recent labor agreements.”

“We look forward to continuing negotiations with TWU Local 100 to get a deal done that both rewards the NYCT work force, and assures adoption of common-sense practices that benefit all New Yorkers,” Rieara said.