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.