NYC school bus union threatening to go on strike

[BlahBlahYouToo]

perfect time to fire and replace them all if they do.

New York (CNN) -- School and city officials in New York expressed concerns Friday that a union strike could shut down yellow bus services for more than 152,000 city students beginning Monday.

"We regret the possibility of what could be a major disturbance in the lives of students and their families," New York City Department of Education Chancellor Dennis Walcott said in a statement.

The conflict stems from an attempt to protect union jobs.

The Education Department filed a bid for bus services Friday that did not include a provision to guarantee jobs for drivers from Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1181, even if their current employer doesn't win the bid.

The union was coy about a possible strike.

"There won't be one Monday, but you never know," ATU spokesman David Roscow told CNN.

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the chancellor called a potential strike illegal. They cited a 2008 ruling from the New York state high court, which declared that including such a job-protection provision in a bid is anti-competitive.

The mayor also said Friday that 300,000 subway cards had been made available to students through the schools, and he urged families to consider alternate transportation for students Monday.

 

[Double Trouble]

Ugh. Unions are just a drain on society.

 

[amdhunter]

Good. I am tired of waiting 10 minutes behind them while they are picking up good for nothings in my neighborhood.

None of the little pieces of crap deserve (or want) free education anyway.

 

[PeshakJang]

Unions holding our childrens' education hostage, no surprise.

 

[HeXen]

Union guy A: "i want, i want, i want, i want, i want, i want, i need.
Union guy B: "i want, i want, i want, i want, i want, i want i need.

 

[Schadenfroh]

The mayor also said Friday that 300,000 subway cards had been made available to students through the schools,

If many routes have subway access, why not cancel said route and let the kids use the subway? I doubt it is any more dangerous than above ground if the child is old enough.

 

[Wordplay]

If many routes have subway access, why not cancel said route and let the kids use the subway? I doubt it is any more dangerous than above ground if the child is old enough.

I've never been to NYC but wouldn't that make things worse, congestive wise?

 

[Schadenfroh]

I've never been to NYC but wouldn't that make things worse, congestive wise?

I dunno about NYC, never been there either, but depending on when school starts (or when you adjust it to start), they can likely utilize mass-transit services prior to the morning commute rush. DC's subways are typically not too bad if you time it right.

Then again, our next generation is like 3x the weight of what we were and I do not even want to get into circumference, so it might not be such a good idea.

 

[cybrsage]

Where I live, the kids who go to the magnet school take the city buses.

 

[fskimospy]

I dunno about NYC, never been there either, but depending on when school starts (or when you adjust it to start), they can likely utilize mass-transit services prior to the morning commute rush. DC's subways are typically not too bad if you time it right.

Then again, our next generation is like 3x the weight of what we were and I do not even want to get into circumference, so it might not be such a good idea.

Not really feasible for people outside of Manhattan. The subway there goes almost everywhere, but in the outer boroughs, particularly Brooklyn and Queens there are significant areas where there's no close subway.