A developing coalition of advocates, including Transport Workers Union Local 100 President John Samuelsen, local and state politicians and other union leaders, participated in a rally held in the Broad street station on New York City's M subway line during the morning rush hour in lower Manhattan on Feb. 4. City Council President Christine Quinn, leaders in the State Legislature, and Gene Russianoff of the Straphangers Campaign, called for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to use available federal stimulus dollars to fund operating expenses, reversing planned service cuts and enabling the continuation of the free fare program for schoolchildren.

Samuelsen noted that, over the last several years, the MTA has diverted $1.3 billion from its operating budget into capital expenditures – “mega‐projects” like the #7 line extension, and the Second Avenue subway. Rather than call for the abandonment of the capital projects, Samuelsen and other transit leaders are counseling fiscal prudence at a time when service cuts are decimating train and bus service for working New Yorkers who depend on them to get to work and others who need them to find jobs. They pointed out that many other major American cities are using available federal stimulus money to fund operating expenses in part – leaving the MTA conspicuous for its refusal to do this.

“We need the [money] flow to go in the other direction now,” Samuelsen said. “But the MTA refuses to consider this and other achievable options to avert today’s operating budget crisis….Apply the $90 million in stimulus money available to you right now – today – as a first step to close the budget gap.”

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn added: “We have, this morning, a simple message for the MTA. We fully recognize that we are in tough budget times. But there is an immediate solution, and it is within the power of the MTA Board: take a portion of the stimulus funds and use that to fund the operating budget. Federal law explicitly provides for this.”

Budget cuts proposed by the MTA would force the shut‐down of two subway lines, running of fewer trains on another seven lines, the elimination of 21 bus lines, and the ending of the student Metro-card program. The Union and advocates say that the cuts will adversely affect four million riders. It would also mean layoffs for between 500 and 1,000 transit workers.

Councilman James Vacca, Chair of the Transportation Committee, was blunt in his assessment:
“Straphangers face an abyss – a mass transit system on the verge of no longer serving the masses. The hole the MTA finds itself in is growing deeper by the day,” he said, referring to today’s reports of greater budget shortfalls caused by lower projections of payroll tax revenues. “We at the Council stand ready to address these issues.”

District Council 37 Executive Director Lillian Roberts, who represents 125,000 municipal workers covering virtually every City agency, called for “a full blown investigation into MTA finances,” echoing a just‐released Inspector General report that found widespread use of contractors who had defaulted on other projects. “We’re tired of hearing that we don’t have the money,” she added. “Stimulus funds should be used to cover operating expenses.

Straphangers Campaign Senior Attorney Gene Russianoff said he was urging the U.S. Congress to make additional transit funding available as part of a jobs bill now being considered on Capitol Hill. U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand has urged a $15 billion appropriation for transit. “I am an M train rider,” Russianoff said, “and if the plan goes forward, 16 trains that run during rush hour would cease to exist.”

"Maintaining subway and bus service is critical to ensuring the sustainability of New York now and in the future," said Rich Kassel, Senior Attorney and transportation expert at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), an environmental organization. "If we are serious about cutting pollution and reducing congestion in the city, we should be improving transit service, not cutting it. Other cities have used federal stimulus funds to maintain transit service, and the MTA should follow their lead.”

TWU Local 100 has invited MTA Chairman Jay Walder to accompany the Union on a trip to Washington, DC, to lobby for funds to be included for mass transit within the Obama Administration’s pending jobs bill, which could result in an infusion of $210 million to bus service, subway service and to save jobs. This legislation may be New York City’s last chance for additional federal funding for mass transit, as the federal transit reauthorization legislation, which sunsetted last year, is not scheduled to be taken up by Congress in 2010.

A Manhattan Supreme Court Justice on December 11 upheld provisions of the Local 100 contract decided by an arbitration panel earlier this year. The MTA, pleading poverty, said the panel had made legal and factual errors.

Justice Peter Sherwood ruled that the arbiters had logical reasons for their decision, most notably that the Local 100 terms are similar to those the city granted other municipal workers. The TWU members are due 11.3% in raises over three years. Police officers, firefighters, sanitation workers and other city employees received annual 4% raises in those contracts, some of which extend into 2012. “In the current economic environment, the award ….is a rich package, but it is not unique,” Sherwood wrote.

Current Local 100 President and TWU International VP Roger Toussaint, who did not run for another term as Local 100 President, issued the following statement:

Statement by Roger Toussaint

The court has upheld our arbitration awards and rejected the MTA’s petition to vacate them. This takes us an important step closer to Local 100 members getting what is rightfully ours.

The MTA went to court to hold up the award in order to punish transit workers and also because elements at the MTA and outside the MTA - notably, the Mayor and certain tabloids - were genuinely upset with the terms.

One term that upset those elements was the 11.3% wage settlement. This settlement is in line with what other public sector employees got in the previous year, but these elements did not want transit workers to get the same terms as other public employees.

Especially upsetting for them was the cap on the health benefits contribution at 1.5% on 40 hours pay. This change is worth nearly an additional 1% in wages. The panel carefully weighed the dollar value of this change, but for these elements this change hurt far more than its dollar value.

Making this change was a priority of ours in the negotiations and in arbitration. Coming out of the strike, we said this was fixable and we are delivering on that. This change is significant in itself and opens up a pathway to further address and resolve this issue in coming years.

The Court has found that the award was made with a solid legal footing, amply complying with the law. The MTA should do the right thing and honor the award now. Anything else would just be stalling out of sheer meanness.

The MTA has been given a small window to avoid continuing on its perilous course. The rule of law must be applied to them as it was applied to transit workers.
Transit workers have won an important victory in having our right to a solid contract award confirmed. We should continue to take all appropriate measures to safeguard this.

TWU Local 225 Branch 4 mobilized its membership to trounce a raid of TWU’s Brick Township New Jersey schools unit in the middle of delicate contract negotiations. Members turned back this attempt by a renegade group to disrupt negotiations by an overwhelming 85% vote with nearly all members voting.

Transit Director and Administrative Vice President Susan Resch, a former Brick municipal employee, complimented Local 225 Branch President Chris Mikkelson and his teams quick response in mobilizing his membership and Local activists to beat back the hostile takeover.

A number of rallies and meetings were held in Brick where various TWU and labor representatives spoke. “We have been here for almost 40 years negotiating strong contracts, said Resch, and clearly our members understand that the TWU provides the best representation.” TWU International President Jim Little added, “The TWU appreciates the loyalty and support that the Local 225 membership vote spoke to; as well as their mandate entrusting us with the ability to continue to provide them with strong contracts in the future.”

President Mikkelson thanked the volunteer core of members and retirees who made the landslide victory possible: “It couldn’t happen without the tireless work of our volunteers who went door-to-door and made phone calls.”

That volunteer group included Rec. Secretary Margaret Reddan, VP Scott Sargent, Brick Chair and E-Board Member Lisa Hand, Sue Carbone, Kathy Bennett, Bobbie O’Brien, Maureen Bresee, Diana DesJardins, Pete DeRosa, Ann Morgan, Claire Gianettino, Hank Sneyers, Tom and Ann Fiorentino, Ann Morgan, Gloria Dykes, Dale Cali, Celina Suckiel, Holly Miller, Joe Ernst, Kenneth Estelle, Robert Gianettino, John Gianettino, Annmarie Hubert, Arthur Johnson John Mills and Diane Nase.

Local 100 took their message to the streets outside the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s headquarters this Wednesday on the morning of the authority’s board meeting.  Gary the Rat and a block-long picket line of 200 members greeted the board with whistles and chants of “No Contract, No Peace!” Local 100 members didn’t just stay outside on this “Day of Solidarity,” but some of the Local’s representatives went into the MTA board meeting to give them a piece of their mind about the state of their contract as well. 

Read more about Local 100’s fight for a fair contract here, and at http://www.twulocal100.org.

Read an interview with Willie Brown published by Philadelphia Citypaper. 

 

At 4 a.m. on Nov. 9 Philadelphia’s transit system slowly churned back to life. TWU Local 234 members were back on the job after the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority’s stubborn refusal to offer an equitable contract forced its workers to hold a strike that lasted six days.

Negotiations were long and heated. Local 234 President Willie Brown, Local 234 Executive Vice President Brian Pollitt, International Vice President Jeffrey L. Brooks and TWU attorney Bruce Bodner spent all six days in negotiations that moved slowly. Pennsylvania's Gov. Ed Rendell and U.S. Representative Bob Brady were involved in the talks. The governor brought his resources with the intent of settling a deal, but in some instances, when the deal broke, he sided with the authority. Brady helped broker the deal and was very helpful in bringing it to closure.

Local 234's contracts with SEPTA always expire in March and negotiations typically begin late the preceding year. Local 234 President Willie Brown assumed the position of president in December 2008, the same month that the National Bureau of Economic Research announced that the country had been in a recession for a year, financial institutions were floundering and being bailed out, and corporate downsizing and closings forced mass layoffs and buyouts. Brown had a very tough job cut out for him. He knew he had to negotiate a contract that provided the standard of life to which his members were accustomed, with a transit authority that was set to use the country's recession as an excuse to give little and ask for a lot in return.

“SEPTA is operating at record-high levels,” said International Vice President Jeff Brooks. “Ridership and revenue levels are the highest the authority has seen in years putting them in a position to really work with us, but they just would not budge.”

The Local started flooding the media with commercials and editorials early on in the year 2009 in an effort to explain to the public that they were struggling with SEPTA, which was trying to cut members' wages and pensions significantly. This proved to be to no avail months later during the strike, when biased media and raging politicians acted as if it came out of thin air.

Throughout the first nine months of 2009, each time TWU tried to negotiate with SEPTA, the authority's offers became worse than the time before, an insult to the negotiation process itself. Local 234 receives its raises, negotiated in the contract, each December, so as fall approached the need to settle a contract became more pressing. Negotiations heated up. The mayor and governor were worried about money. "The city's contract is up next and they want to put zeros on the city," said Local 234 President Willie Brown, but the transit authority is in much better financial condition than the city. "If we didn't take zeros, they'd have a hard time giving others that. We were the first, so they figured if they make us take it they'll make everyone else take it too."

Local 234's fight helped pave the way for other unions whose contracts are about to expire and need to negotiate a fair contract for their members. If unions didn't fight for their members' rights then all working people would suffer. In solidarity, the Local was fighting for respect, fair treatment and the right for hard-working people to be able to provide for their families. It was fighting for the middle class.

October negotiations had brought out a contract that cost workers while it benefited management; offered a decreased raise, which was diminished by an increased pension payment; and perpetuated discrimination by neglecting to include "picking" rights, the right for employees to choose their equipment and job placement based on seniority. Forced to turn to the last resort - a strike - Local 234 leadership took the decision to its membership. At the strike authorization vote on Oct. 25, members unanimously voted to strike. The strike was set for 12:01 a.m. on Oct. 31.

At 11:45 p.m. on Oct. 30, President Willie Brown received a phone call from Governor Rendell, who was pleading with Brown not to call a strike, his major concern being the national attention it would cause at that time when Philadelphia was hosting several of the World Series games at the city's Citizens Park. Rendell asked both parties to his office for 'round the clock negotiations.

Over the next three days, the TWU tried to reach a settlement by asking SEPTA for a list of costs created by the contract, and calculating how the union could still get what its members need but cost the authority less. SEPTA's numbers on the cost of union pensions raised a big red flag. SEPTA has always underfunded its workers pensions and, in the proposed contract, was asking them to contribute more for less in return. And then, during negotiations the Local discovered that responsible and honest management of the funds was in question as well, and saw that it would need to request an audit of the pension plans to ensure its members’ money was being handled correctly. SEPTA refused a provision that would require it to allow the TWU to audit the pensions and told Brown "take [the contract] or leave it." This brought negotiations to a standstill and prompted the now unavoidable strike.

At 3 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3 all of Local 234's City, Frontier and Suburban division members went on strike. The rank and file held down the picket lines as the negotiating team battled with SEPTA over the right to a fair and equitable contract. Brown didn't want to stall an entire city and become the "most hated man in Philadelphia," but his duty called, to get an equitable contract for his members and strike if necessary, as it was. "The strike was something I had to do, not something I wanted to do to inconvenience anybody. It is our only tool of survival, and it was effective in the end," said Brown.

Hungry for a story and an end to the strike, the media ate up the misinformation that Gov. Rendell fed it over the six-day period. The governor told Philadelphians the strike was going to end when negotiations were far from reaching a resolution. He also appeared on television announcing that the Local was taking the contract to the members to vote. This was a blatant lie; he already knew that the TWU Constitution requires the Local Executive Board to vote on a contract before it goes to members for ratification.

On Sunday, Nov. 8, the Executive Board approved the contract and just after midnight on Monday, Local 234 leadership and SEPTA signed. The contract provides 11.5% raise over five years with a $1,250 signing bonus; the right for the union to select which contract grievances go to arbitration and in what order – a win that will help to eliminate the discrimination caused by lack of "picking" rights; the exclusion of the ability for SEPTA to impose any changes on the union if health care reform increases cost for the authority; the continuation of the dental plan, among other provisions. Read the details of the tentative contract here.

“We stand united,” said Brown. “We continue to move Philadelphia, and we move it well.”

Local 226 settled a contract with First Student at the Clifton, N.J. Depot on October 30, averting an almost definite strike.  After many contentious bargaining sessions Susan Resch, Administrative VP; Jerome Lafragola, Staff Representative; and Jon Bradford, President of Local 226, with the help of a federal mediator, came to an agreement just hours before members were set to walk out on the job.

The sticking point in the negotiations was a zero percent increase in the first year of the agreement, which Bradford, the committee and members all agreed was unacceptable. 

The three-year agreement provides for yearly substantial wage increases for drivers and aides, and many other important benefit improvements.  The contract was overwhelmingly ratified by the voting members with only one “no” vote.
 

TWU Local 234 celebrates success today after settling an acceptable contract with the Southeastern Philadelphia Transit Authority, which ended a six-day long strike early this morning. Local 234 members who run and maintain Philadelphia’s subways, buses and trolleys are back on the job today. The contract will now go to Local 234's 5,100 members for ratification in the next week and a half.

November 6, 2009

This morning, Philadelphia's transit workers, TWU Local 234 members, entered their fourth day of a strike– their fourth day sacrificing their pay and waiting for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority (SEPTA) to negotiate and give them the contract they deserve. These transit workers have been running SEPTA without a contract for eight months, since their last expired in March. They've been waiting for management to negotiate an acceptable new contract, but they can not wait any longer.

For the last couple of weeks the local government and SEPTA have been well aware of the possibility of a strike. Local 234 made this possibility publicly known through advertisements and public statements. Self-serving politicians have been feeding lies to a frustrated public when they could easily give Local 234 the fair contract it is asking for – a pension plan that does not increasingly siphon workers' pay while it underfunds their pension plans; a raise that adheres to traditional standards; and "picking" rights to end discriminatory practices at SEPTA.

The TWU understands these are tough economic times, but the transit authority has seen great success in recent months. SEPTA has been seeing record levels of ridership, record levels of revenue and an unprecedented infusion of stimulus dollars, some of which is directed to operating costs. The TWU is not asking for anything that SEPTA cannot afford.

Transit work is not easy. Local 234 members risk their lives daily to keep Philadelphia moving and safe; they give back to their communities and take care of their families. They are people who deserve a fair contract. The Transport Workers Union remains united and strong and will continue to fight for the contract that its members deserve.

View photos of Local 234 members picketing and fighting for their right to a fair contract at twu.org/flickr

Statement by Willie Brown
TWU Local 234 President on Key Strike Issues

While other issues remain unsettled, the key issue is pensions and how members' pensions will be funded. SEPTA has underfunded members' pensions for more than 20 years.

SEPTA's board would like to have TWU members pay for a greater share of their pension contribution. Meanwhile they are increasing pension benefits for managers with a reduced contribution – which we find completely inequitable.

Many of the comments made yesterday by political figures were not helpful and were inaccurate. Local 234 had made it clear through public statements and advertising that a strike was a strong possibility.

While we acted in good faith and agreed to wait until after the final home game of the World Series – strike was never off the table. Mayor Nutter intentionally misled the public about our intentions. This was a disservice to those that rely on the transit system and on area commuters.

We greatly appreciate Governor Rendell's efforts to bring about a settlement. However, the numbers the governor has widely circulated are misleading. The way I do arithmetic, If I give you three dollars and I immediately take away two -- you're left with one dollar. In the governor's math you would still have three dollars. In the real world, the proposed salary increase would be largely erased by the increased out-of-pocket pension contribution.

We know these are difficult times for many in our community and across the nation. However, our employer is experiencing record levels of ridership, record levels of revenue and an unprecedented infusion of federal stimulus dollars -- a portion of which is directed to operating costs. Our proposals do not create a financial hardship in any way.

Pension security is important to our members. In order to protect our retirement years we are willing and able to stay out as many days as it takes to reach a fair settlement.

We are united and we are one.

Don't forget to check out our photos on Flickr.

Willie James, the first African American president of TWU Local 100, passed away last Friday at the age of 73.

Willie James was a pioneer in many regards and will be remembered as such," said TWU Local 100 President Roger Toussaint. "The entire Local 100 membership mourns his passing."

Then Secretary-Treasurer of the Local, he was appointed President by the Executive Board in 1996. He was subsequently elected to that office and served in it through December 2000.

James was raised in Harlem by a working mother and served in the military and as a police officer before hiring on in 1967 as a Bus Operator at the Manhattan and Bronx Surface Transportation Operating Authority.

Before becoming Secretary-Treasurer and President, he held several other Local offices. As Director of Training and Upgrade, he saw the first two women members advance from the title of Cleaner to Bus Maintainer.

He also served at various times on the Board of Directors of the Municipal Credit Union, where he was Acting Chairman and Chairman from 2007 to 2009, the Executive Board of the NAACP, and as Deacon at Mount Harmon Baptist Church. He was also a founding member of the Society of African American Transit Employees.

His wife Rosabelle passed away in 2005. James is survived by his children, Daisy Moyd and Charles James, his three grandsons, eleven great grandchildren, three great great grandchildren, his sister Janet Surrency Monroe, and the 38,000 members of his Union.

Mourning Willie James
Friday, November 6
Wake: 3:00pm
Funeral: 7:00pm
Mt. Calvary Baptist Church
(241 West 142 Street)

Transport Workers Union Local 234 members do not like to see their city’s transit system stalled any more than their fellow Philadelphians do – after all, transit is their livelihood - but they cannot work without a contract any longer. Local 234 members, employees of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA), went on strike at 3 a.m. Tuesday morning, Nov. 3, over an eight-month long contract dispute revolving around wages, pensions and “picking” rights.

“No one is happy that it’s come to this,” said Local 234 President Willie Brown. “Mayor Nutter, Gov. Rendell and SEPTA are trying to take advantage of our members and they have forced us to this very unfortunate point.”

The Local has been in negotiations with SEPTA since their last four-year contract expired in March 2009, but has been unable to reach an acceptable renewed contract with the authority, which has self-serving local politicians, including Rendell and Nutter, on its side.

SEPTA has put forward a contract that continues to cost workers while it benefits management, and offers a decreased raise, which is diminished by an increased pension payment.

The transit authority has been underfunding TWU members’ pensions for years; while it funds 90 percent of managements’ pensions it only funds 50 percent of workers’ pensions. Local 234’s 5,100 members already contribute 2 percent of their pay to their pension funds and, in the new contract, are being asked to contribute another 1.5 percent more for little pension increase for most workers. Management contributes less than one percent of its pay to the fund.

Our pension is grossly underfunded," Brown said in a press conference this morning. "We're not being unreasonable, we're just asking for a fair contract. We put twice as much in, they get twice as much out," he said. "We'll stay out as long as it takes to secure our pension."

The contract would also decrease the annual raise that SEPTA employees receive each year. It offers a signing bonus in lieu of the regular 3 percent December raise, with another 2.5 percent raise promised in 2010, and 3 percent December raises for the remaining three years of the contract. With the increased pension contribution of 1.5 percent, the already minimized raise is significantly diminished.

The last point of contention for Local 234 are members’ “picking” rights, the right for employees to choose their equipment and job placement based on seniority. “If our members do not get ‘picking’ rights then SEPTA remains free to continue discriminatory practices we’ve seen for years,” said Jeff Brooks, TWU International Chief of Staff and former Local 234 President.

The strike follows months of negotiations that led to local politicians’ involvement in the days preceding the World Series games held at Philadelphia’s Citizens Park. “The Governor, Mayor and U.S. Representative Robert Brady were involved in the negotiation in order stave off the strike until after the World Series,” said Brooks. “Now that that is over they are completely inflexible and have stepped out of the picture.”

Nutter and Rendell fear that any successful and acceptable contract for TWU members will set a pattern for all city workers, including police and firefighters, and they simply do not want to provide a fair contract to the people who run Philadelphia daily.

SEPTA is in better financial condition than the city itself, but after eight months, is still unwilling to negotiate a fair contract for its workers.

“Our members have families to care for and bills to pay,” said Brown. “We are fighting for the fair contract that the men and women who move Philadelphia deserve.”

Brown and other union leaders plan to meet with Gov. Rendell today or tomorrow, but will not meet with Mayor Nutter, who refuses to bring anything to the table.