New York City Transit Strike 12-20-2005

[dmcowen674]

Start of Boston Tea Party II???

This may be one of many catalysts sending the U.S. into Revolution II. Workers simply want to be treated fairly compared to the almighty Corporate dollar.

Unfortunately these workers no longer fit into the new Republican business model for America.

They will need to be all fired and lower paid workers with no benifits or retirement hired in their place.

Bend over, enjoy and Merry Christmas

12-20-2005 New York City Transit Workers Strike

It is New York's first citywide transit walkout since an 11-day strike in 1980, and officials said they would seek quick court action, which could include stiff fines. Pay raises and pension and health benefits for new hires are main sticking points.

The union called the strike after a late round of negotiations broke down Monday night. Union President Roger Toussaint said the union board voted overwhelmingly to call the strike.

"This is a fight over dignity and respect on the job, a concept that is very alien to the MTA," Toussaint said. "Transit workers are tired of being underappreciated and disrespected."

The union said the latest MTA offer included annual raises of 3 percent, 4 percent and 3.5 percent; the previous proposal included 3 percent raises each year. MTA workers earn around $47,000 to $55,000 annually.

But Toussaint said the union wanted a better offer from the MTA, especially when the agency has a $1 billion surplus this year.

"With a $1 billion surplus, this contract between the MTA and the Transport Workers Union should have been a no-brainer," Toussaint said. "Sadly, that has not been the case."

 

[alent1234]

I live in NYC and can honestly say that everyone hates the TWU and thinks they are smoking crack for making these demands. Koch was on the radio today and said that Bloomberg would crush the union with the legal tools they have just as Koch did 20 years ago.

 

[Meuge]

STFU

These people are so unreasonable. They want 8(!) percent PER YEAR, EVERY YEAR, for the next 3 years. They can kiss my hairy arse. Nobody gets that in the current economic climate. I get 1.5, my parents get same. These people SHOULD all be fired.

Moreover, they are halting transportation in a city that is more reliant on subways than any other in the US. The estimated economic losses are up to 1 BILLION PER DAY! ******, I say that we should take that billion, and divide it among the union members... if they cause that damage, they should pay it all back. Have their salaries cut to minimum wage for the rest of their lives.

 

[alent1234]

not only that they want to retire at 50 and pay zero healthcare

 

[Meuge]

Originally posted by: alent1234
not only that they want to retire at 50 and pay zero healthcare

Exactly.

They claim that the current salaries "restrict their access to the middle class". And where in the Constitution does it say that train workers have an absolute right to be in the middle class? It doesn't say that for anyone else, so how did they come up with this concept?!

The clerks who sit in a booth, telling people how to get places by train, make $55K/year. WTF??? That's ALREADY too much, even ignoring the collossal benefits they already have.

 

[Ferocious]

I am pro union generally. However I do disagree with this strike...if it is illegal.

First it is supposedly illegal. And unlike the PATCO strike, passenger lives aren't really at risk here.

The TWU should call off the strike quickly and get back to the table. If the strike is not illegal....then so be it.

 

[dmcowen674]

Originally posted by: Meuge

Originally posted by: alent1234
not only that they want to retire at 50 and pay zero healthcare

Exactly.

They claim that the current salaries "restrict their access to the middle class". And where in the Constitution does it say that train workers have an absolute right to be in the middle class? It doesn't say that for anyone else, so how did they come up with this concept?!

The clerks who sit in a booth, telling people how to get places by train, make $55K/year. WTF??? That's ALREADY too much, even ignoring the collossal benefits they already have.

Really how dare they try and make a decent wage in a high priced area such as New York. They should be making half of that and live on Peanut Butter & Jelly, live in squalor while working your ass off.

 

[alent1234]

they already make an above average wage of most people in NYC

 

[Meuge]

Originally posted by: dmcowen674

Originally posted by: Meuge

Originally posted by: alent1234
not only that they want to retire at 50 and pay zero healthcare

Exactly.

They claim that the current salaries "restrict their access to the middle class". And where in the Constitution does it say that train workers have an absolute right to be in the middle class? It doesn't say that for anyone else, so how did they come up with this concept?!

The clerks who sit in a booth, telling people how to get places by train, make $55K/year. WTF??? That's ALREADY too much, even ignoring the collossal benefits they already have.

Really how dare they try and make a decent wage in a high priced area such as New York. They should be making half of that and live on Peanut Butter & Jelly, live in squalor while working your ass off.

They can kiss my arse. $45-55k is more than a decent wage, even in new york. ******, cops make less than they do... by a significant margin. The fact that they can blackmail the city does not entitle them to higher income.

 

[Meuge]

What's next - the street cleaners and McD workers will strike because they are "restricted from the middle class"?

If they wanted to be in the middle class, they shouldn't have smoked crack and dropped out of high school, and wound up working for the subway. Sorry, that's the way things work.

 

[Meuge]

8% for 3 years is 26%. That would let a booth clerk make around $70'000/year (!!!), while a teacher makes $30-55k. Sorry, that's outrageous.

 

[Vic]

Public employees IMO should not be allowed to unionize or strike. They work for the people, not "the man." They serve the public, not capital.

As it is, looking at the MTA website, it appears that the MTA has already declared the strike to be illegal. Hopefully the whole TWU gets fired.

 

[Meuge]

Actually it's already illegal for them to strike. The Taylor law fines them 2 days pay for every day of strike. But it's nothing compared to the losses the entire city takes. I think everyone who doesn't receive their wages for the days they can't get to work (or are late) because of the strike, should file a class-action suit against the TWU.

 

[dmcowen674]

Originally posted by: Vic
Public employees IMO should not be allowed to unionize or strike. They work for the people, not "the man." They serve the public, not capital.

As it is, looking at the MTA website, it appears that the MTA has already declared the strike to be illegal. Hopefully the whole TWU gets fired.

Like I said, there is no room for Unions anymore especially for public sector jobs.

 

[Vic]

Originally posted by: dmcowen674
Like I said, there is no room for Unions anymore especially for public sector jobs.

There was NEVER room for unions in government employment. That they have unionized, and for decades abused their collective position over the public welfare with higher pay and benefits than is typical for the private market, has been a gross abuse of the public trust.

 

[BBond]

The transit workers' union is willling to negotiate pay raises, that new hires keep the same retirement age of 55 as the current workers, and that they be provided healthcare just as the current workers are provided. The MTA is stonewalling in an attempt to break another union.

The problem isn't unions. The problem is the union busting tactics used by corporations and government while corporate and government leaders take away record profits and salaries. Where is the outrage against them? Why do Americans attack only the workers?

Transit union announces strike after contract talks break down

Tuesday, December 20, 2005
BY SARA KUGLER
Associated Press

NEW YORK -- The city's transit union called a strike this morning after failing to reach a deal with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority following days of bitter labor talks, ensuring that New York will be thrown into chaos by the height of the morning rush hour.

"With a $1 billion surplus, this contract between the MTA and the Transport Workers Union should have been a no-brainer. Sadly that has not been the case," union President Roger Toussaint said at a news conference.

The Transport Workers Union and the MTA had worked furiously to try and reach a new contract, hoping to avoid the city's first transit strike in more than 25 years. It is illegal for mass transit workers to strike in New York, which means the 33,000 bus and subway employees will incur huge fines.

Bus drivers were instructed to drop off all passengers and return to their depots, and subways will finish their trips as turnstiles are chained and locked up. Exits will remain open to allow any last passengers off before the stations are shuttered.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg was poised to put into effect a sweeping emergency plan to reduce gridlock and keep certain streets open for emergency vehicles. New Yorkers were urged to make arrangements to car pool, bicycle and walk to work, or change their schedules and work from home.

Bloomberg has said the walkout could cost the city as much as $400 million a day, and would be particularly harsh at the height of the holiday shopping and tourist season.

Talks broke down about an hour before the midnight deadline, and the Transport Workers Union and Metropolitan Transportation Authority offered bleak assessments of the prospects of avoiding a strike.

MTA spokesman Tom Kelly said the agency "put a fair offer on the negotiating table. Unfortunately, that offer has been rejected."

The union board then went into a meeting to vote on whether to call a strike, but the discussions dragged well past 2 a.m.

The union said the latest MTA offer included annual raises of 3 percent, 4 percent and 3.5 percent; the previous proposal included 3 percent raises each year.

Earlier, Toussaint offered a pessimistic evaluation of the talks in a speech before a boisterous union gathering. "As we stand right now, with six hours to go until our deadline, it does not look good," he said.

The down-to-the-wire negotiations came as workers at two private bus lines in Queens walked off the job, a move that Transport Workers Union Local 100 said could be the first phase of a citywide strike if the MTA doesn't budge their way.

Meanwhile, the union posted a strike plan on its Web site, instructing its members to lock up facilities safely and document everything they do to prevent "management sabotage."

More than 7 million daily riders would be forced to find new ways to get around if the union's more than 33,000 workers shut down the nation's largest transit system.

Bloomberg said yesterday that a strike would freeze traffic into "gridlock that will tie the record for all gridlocks."

"Cooler heads have to prevail," Bloomberg said. "If this union strikes, it will severely hurt its members as well as the city."

The contract expired Friday just after midnight, but the two sides agreed to keep talking through the weekend and the union set a new deadline for today. The city had been bracing for a citywide transit shutdown for rush hour Friday.

Pension issues have been a major sticking point in the talks. The MTA wants to raise the age at which new employees become eligible for full pension from 55 to 62, which the union says is unfair.

Like last week, Bloomberg headed to the Office of Emergency Management headquarters and planned to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge to City Hall if there were a strike.

Commuter frustration was evident yesterday, with people fed up with all the uncertainty.

"Enough is enough," said Craig DeRosa, who relies on the subway to get to work. "Their benefits are as rich as you see anywhere in this country and they are still complaining. I don't get it."

In what could be the first wave of transit picket lines across the city, more than 100 employees of the striking Jamaica Buses Inc. and Triboro Coach Corp. bus lines were out early in Queens, many chanting "No contract, no work!"

The companies serve about 50,000 commuters, and are in the process of being taken over by the MTA. Thus, the union temporarily found a loophole to avoid the state law that prohibits strikes by public employees. Under the law, striking workers would have their pay docked and face hefty fines.

"No one wants to be out here," said 36-year-old Triboro bus driver Frank Lomanto, standing outside the company depot. "But this is something we have to do."

At a Jackson Heights transit hub shortly after midnight, Brunilda Ayala said she had no sympathy for the union.

"How can you give a raise to a bus driver who would make three old ladies walk home in the cold?" asked Ayala, 57.

A citywide bus and subway strike would be New York's first since an 11-day walkout in 1980.

 

[alent1234]

the TWU is crazy

they want to lower the retirement age to 50

they currently pay zero for healthcare while the average is 25% for most people. It's not a terrible thing to ask them to pay a little more for healthcare. And the MTA surplus is just as magical as the late 1990's budget surplus.

 

[dmcowen674]

Originally posted by: BBond

The problem isn't unions.

Corporate and government leaders take away record profits and salaries.

Where is the outrage against them?

Why do Americans attack only the workers?

You'll have to ask the Republicans specifically.

 

[Meuge]

Originally posted by: BBond
The transit workers' union is willling to negotiate pay raises, that new hires keep the same retirement age of 55 as the current workers, and that they be provided healthcare just as the current workers are provided. The MTA is stonewalling in an attempt to break another union.

The problem isn't unions. The problem is the union busting tactics used by corporations and government while corporate and government leaders take away record profits and salaries. Where is the outrage against them? Why do Americans attack only the workers?

They are not entitled to anything. That surplus was earmarked for building another subway line, and renovating the stations that are in horrible disrepair. These people are overpaid, and have benefits second to none. They are not entitled to take this money.

 

[Vic]

When "government leaders" make a profit, the end result is lower taxes to the people. That just might be the reason why you don't see any public outrage. When public employees strike, the end result is a loss of vital services at a staggering cost to the people. That just might be the reason why the public attacks the workers, especially when you consider that $55k/yr. with full benefits and full retirement at age 55 is significantly above-market terms for transit workers.

 

[talyn00]

Originally posted by: Vic
When "government leaders" make a profit, the end result is lower taxes to the people. That just might be the reason why you don't see any public outrage. When public employees strike, the end result is a loss of vital services at a staggering cost to the people. That just might be the reason why the public attacks the workers, especially when you consider that $55k/yr. with full benefits and full retirement at age 55 is significantly above-market terms for transit workers.

so whenever the government makes a profit, their workers can just threaten to walk out if they don't get their cut of it? That IMO is the reason why the public attacks the workers. Government surpluses should be used for public works projects, or to give a little back to those who paid for it (the taxcuts)

 

[Hacp]

Originally posted by: BBond
The transit workers' union is willling to negotiate pay raises, that new hires keep the same retirement age of 55 as the current workers, and that they be provided healthcare just as the current workers are provided. The MTA is stonewalling in an attempt to break another union.

The problem isn't unions. The problem is the union busting tactics used by corporations and government while corporate and government leaders take away record profits and salaries. Where is the outrage against them? Why do Americans attack only the workers?

Transit union announces strike after contract talks break down

Tuesday, December 20, 2005
BY SARA KUGLER
Associated Press

NEW YORK -- The city's transit union called a strike this morning after failing to reach a deal with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority following days of bitter labor talks, ensuring that New York will be thrown into chaos by the height of the morning rush hour.

"With a $1 billion surplus, this contract between the MTA and the Transport Workers Union should have been a no-brainer. Sadly that has not been the case," union President Roger Toussaint said at a news conference.

The Transport Workers Union and the MTA had worked furiously to try and reach a new contract, hoping to avoid the city's first transit strike in more than 25 years. It is illegal for mass transit workers to strike in New York, which means the 33,000 bus and subway employees will incur huge fines.

Bus drivers were instructed to drop off all passengers and return to their depots, and subways will finish their trips as turnstiles are chained and locked up. Exits will remain open to allow any last passengers off before the stations are shuttered.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg was poised to put into effect a sweeping emergency plan to reduce gridlock and keep certain streets open for emergency vehicles. New Yorkers were urged to make arrangements to car pool, bicycle and walk to work, or change their schedules and work from home.

Bloomberg has said the walkout could cost the city as much as $400 million a day, and would be particularly harsh at the height of the holiday shopping and tourist season.

Talks broke down about an hour before the midnight deadline, and the Transport Workers Union and Metropolitan Transportation Authority offered bleak assessments of the prospects of avoiding a strike.

MTA spokesman Tom Kelly said the agency "put a fair offer on the negotiating table. Unfortunately, that offer has been rejected."

The union board then went into a meeting to vote on whether to call a strike, but the discussions dragged well past 2 a.m.

The union said the latest MTA offer included annual raises of 3 percent, 4 percent and 3.5 percent; the previous proposal included 3 percent raises each year.

Earlier, Toussaint offered a pessimistic evaluation of the talks in a speech before a boisterous union gathering. "As we stand right now, with six hours to go until our deadline, it does not look good," he said.

The down-to-the-wire negotiations came as workers at two private bus lines in Queens walked off the job, a move that Transport Workers Union Local 100 said could be the first phase of a citywide strike if the MTA doesn't budge their way.

Meanwhile, the union posted a strike plan on its Web site, instructing its members to lock up facilities safely and document everything they do to prevent "management sabotage."

More than 7 million daily riders would be forced to find new ways to get around if the union's more than 33,000 workers shut down the nation's largest transit system.

Bloomberg said yesterday that a strike would freeze traffic into "gridlock that will tie the record for all gridlocks."

"Cooler heads have to prevail," Bloomberg said. "If this union strikes, it will severely hurt its members as well as the city."

The contract expired Friday just after midnight, but the two sides agreed to keep talking through the weekend and the union set a new deadline for today. The city had been bracing for a citywide transit shutdown for rush hour Friday.

Pension issues have been a major sticking point in the talks. The MTA wants to raise the age at which new employees become eligible for full pension from 55 to 62, which the union says is unfair.

Like last week, Bloomberg headed to the Office of Emergency Management headquarters and planned to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge to City Hall if there were a strike.

Commuter frustration was evident yesterday, with people fed up with all the uncertainty.

"Enough is enough," said Craig DeRosa, who relies on the subway to get to work. "Their benefits are as rich as you see anywhere in this country and they are still complaining. I don't get it."

In what could be the first wave of transit picket lines across the city, more than 100 employees of the striking Jamaica Buses Inc. and Triboro Coach Corp. bus lines were out early in Queens, many chanting "No contract, no work!"

The companies serve about 50,000 commuters, and are in the process of being taken over by the MTA. Thus, the union temporarily found a loophole to avoid the state law that prohibits strikes by public employees. Under the law, striking workers would have their pay docked and face hefty fines.

"No one wants to be out here," said 36-year-old Triboro bus driver Frank Lomanto, standing outside the company depot. "But this is something we have to do."

At a Jackson Heights transit hub shortly after midnight, Brunilda Ayala said she had no sympathy for the union.

"How can you give a raise to a bus driver who would make three old ladies walk home in the cold?" asked Ayala, 57.

A citywide bus and subway strike would be New York's first since an 11-day walkout in 1980.

Ok, the MTA has a 1 billion surplus right now. In 2 years, it will be over 1 billion in debt. They are using the bulk of the money to return $$ to riders, FUND PENSION PLANS, and a little left over for security and transit improvements. There is NO money left for the union. The union is asking for too much, while stressing that the MTA has a 1 billion surplus. Well sorry to ruin your party union, but unless the MTA does what it is doing now, it might have to go bankrupt, and your workers might have their pensions defaulted. Defaulted pensions go to the US government, which then has to raise taxes on everyone so they can pay for the mistakes of the transit union. The MTA has already offered too much. Retirement at 65 for new workers and a 3%/2%/2% raise is fair enough.

 

[Ferocious]

Very few working people ever want to strike. If the majority voted for a work stoppage without pay....there must be reasons for it. Especially so if they voted for an illegal strike.

People here know little about the details that led up to this.

Certain people here just seem to be jealous. Must come from going to work every day and having to take it in the ass.

 

[irwincur]

Delphi, GM, the crumbling of the AFL/CIO - when will people get it. Unions are too expensive to maintain and will eventually destroy what they promise to preserve - high paying jobs.

Similar to simply increasing minmium wage - to the simpletons on the left this always seems like a good solution. After all, if you pay everyone more, everyone will have more money. Well yes, and no. Like that, Unions cause local inflation bubbles and they generally lead to people expecting more and more. It is a vicious circle that needs to end before it rips apart the nation and industry.

Government unskilled Union workers should get paid no more than the average unskilled wage for the region they are working in. The days of paying a mailman in Iowa $40/hr should be over, the same goes for some high school dropout wiorking a booth in NYC. They should really be making about $10-12/hr to be competitive. This way we could reduce costs, afford to keep their benefits, and keep return excess to those that paid it - taxpayers. After all, it is not a government surplus, it is a surplus of money that the taxpayers have given the government. It is not their money it is ours.

 

[halik]

Originally posted by: dmcowen674
Start of Boston Tea Party II???

This may be one of many catalysts sending the U.S. into Revolution II. Workers simply want to be treated fairly compared to the almighty Corporate dollar.

Unfortunately these workers no longer fit into the new Republican business model for America.

They will need to be all fired and lower paid workers with no benifits or retirement hired in their place.

Bend over, enjoy and Merry Christmas

12-20-2005 New York City Transit Workers Strike

It is New York's first citywide transit walkout since an 11-day strike in 1980, and officials said they would seek quick court action, which could include stiff fines. Pay raises and pension and health benefits for new hires are main sticking points.

The union called the strike after a late round of negotiations broke down Monday night. Union President Roger Toussaint said the union board voted overwhelmingly to call the strike.

"This is a fight over dignity and respect on the job, a concept that is very alien to the MTA," Toussaint said. "Transit workers are tired of being underappreciated and disrespected."

The union said the latest MTA offer included annual raises of 3 percent, 4 percent and 3.5 percent; the previous proposal included 3 percent raises each year. MTA workers earn around $47,000 to $55,000 annually.

But Toussaint said the union wanted a better offer from the MTA, especially when the agency has a $1 billion surplus this year.

"With a $1 billion surplus, this contract between the MTA and the Transport Workers Union should have been a no-brainer," Toussaint said. "Sadly, that has not been the case."

Son, i just got a job in NYC 63K base sallary. I hold two degrees from top 10 university and work on wall street. My annual sallary is increased to inflation and I've NEVER heard of anyone getting guaranteed 8% annual rise. The only thing that's getting bent is the 11million people living in NYC that have to deal with the mess created by these greedy assholes.




"This may be one of many catalysts sending the U.S. into Revolution II. Workers simply want to be treated fairly compared to the almighty Corporate dollar.
Unfortunately these workers no longer fit into the new Republican business model for America."

Zendari would be proud of you, this is the same kind of nonsense he spews out in every single post. You might wanna try composing real arguments, because otherwise people will laugh at you much like they laugh at that fool...


And please, take your flamebait and senseless left wing rhetoric elsewhere. If you wanan argue something, do it. If you wanna make Bush-esque speeches ridden with cliches ("allmight corporate dollar" :roll: ), go get yourself a blog or something