Strike shuts down NYC transit system

The unions have tried everything for three years then they used this leverage as their final option then this is what the city mayor got. No union wants to go on a strike. It is no fun.
 
Rose Immortal said:
This is awfully selfish of the union to play with millions of people in this way. :(
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:werd: They are playing with the lives of the people of New York City. Just like the article says, they've lost the trust of those people.
 
im tell you about that NYC very worse because the Terror got attack since 9/11 and after 9/11 the police officer always do that stands beside of subway and look forward check of bomb of dont have there or have!

and police officer look lady's purse check-up if have no guns,knives,etc they can enter to subway since 9/11 same airport always do that same things check purse,wallet,laptop computer,suitcase&busniess suitcase,etc if have no bomb in airport security its so important!

i never went NYC before since 9/11 but im wishes i would go there but cant because of terror more worse!
 
With the strike announcement, members of the Transit Workers Union (TWU) began shutting down the city's trains, buses and subways, affecting more than 7 million people who use the system on a typical day.

"As always, Local 100 members will meet our responsibility for the safety of our riders, for the safety of all transit workers, and for the safe maintenance of the equipment we will use when we get a fair contract and return to work," a statement on Web site for TWU Local 100 said.

"Local 100 members shall make sure that the subways are buses are shut down safely and efficiently at the beginning of the strike. Local 100 members shall then make sure that the system stays shut down for the duration of the strike."

The leaders of the TCU System Board No. 86 signaled their solidarity with workers on the MTA system but stopped short of threatening to strike in concert with them.

Russell Oathout, general chairman of No. 86, complained that his members also have been unsuccessful in negotiating a contract for its members for three years.

"A similar situation is in store for the MTA's Metro-North property if a fair agreement is not reached," Oathout warned in a news conference.
 
Heath said:
The unions have tried everything for three years then they used this leverage as their final option then this is what the city mayor got. No union wants to go on a strike. It is no fun.
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Yes this is the union's nuclear option with effects as big as the famous blackout they had years ago.

Richard
 
Right now, staffs agree to negotiate if they will while working.

I feel bad for them, because everybody are getting lot of fine and pay more than they would earn. heh heh
 
EDGE said:
Right now, staffs agree to negotiate if they will while working.

I feel bad for them, because everybody are getting lot of fine and pay more than they would earn. heh heh
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yea. union's parent warned them not to strike but the union went ahead and good enough they get fined a million dollars per day. high percent of ppl in nyc dont support the union's strike.

see below.

NYC union leaders urge strikers to go to work
Recommendation comes as talks continue on permanent transit settlement

BREAKING NEWS
MSNBC staff and news service reports
Updated: 12:30 p.m. ET Dec. 22, 2005


NEW YORK - Transit union leaders agreed Thursday to urge striking employees to return to work while talks aimed at seeking a permanent settlement of New York’s crippling mass transit walkout continue, a state mediator said.

Mediator Richard Curreri said Transport Workers Union President Roger Toussaint would make a “positive recommendation” to the union’s executive board to have the 33,000 striking subway and bus workers return to work — ending a three-day strike. The executive board was to meet at 1 p.m. ET.

“Both parties have a genuine desire to resolve their differences,” said Curreri, head of a three-member state mediation panel. “They have agreed to resume negotiations while the TWU takes steps to return its membership.”

No timetable was announced for the restoration of bus and subway service, but the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has said it would take at least 12 hours to restore service once the board votes.

Gov. George Pataki had said earlier that there would be no negotiations until workers returned to their jobs.

The announcement came 56 hours after workers walked out at 3 a.m. on Tuesday, a job action that city officials said cost the city hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.

Curreri said there would be a news blackout during further negotiations, as agreed to by both sides. He spoke at the same time lawyers from the city and state were due in a Brooklyn courtroom in an effort to get union workers back on the job. That session was postponed until 4 p.m.

$1 million a day in fines
The TWU Local 100 has already been fined $1 million a day for the duration of the strike and a judge ordered Toussaint and other top officials to appear in court Thursday, warning that jail was a distinct possibility.

Toussaint said Wednesday the union was talking to mediators and would consider returning to work if transit authorities withdrew a contentious pension proposal.

However, MTA Chairman Peter Kalikow issued a stern response to that, calling removal of the pension proposal an “outrageous demand” and urging Toussaint to reconsider his position.

The MTA was running television ads on Thursday urging workers to return to the job, saying “many hundreds” of the 34,000 employees were already breaking the strike.

If negotiators reach agreement, union leaders would have to seek the approval of their board to end the strike, and it could then take at least a day for full service to resume on the subway and bus system, which normally carry 7 million passengers a day.

State law prohibits public sector employees from striking, and the court is considering imposing fines on workers.


Public opinion divided
Public opinion has been divided over the strike. A WNBC/Marist poll published late on Wednesday showed 55 percent of New Yorkers opposed the transit workers’ decision to strike, while 38 percent supported it.

Asked who was more to blame for the strike, 40 percent said the union, 39 percent said the MTA and 21 percent were unsure.

Suburban train services and bus lines were putting on extra trains to cope with the rise in passengers and private bus and van services were doing a roaring trade.

Despite strict car pool rules meaning only vehicles carrying at least four people were allowed to enter Manhattan during the morning rush hour, traffic was heavy and slow.

Shops, restaurants and other service industries have been hit hard the week before Christmas. Officials have said the strike will cost the city $400 million on day one and $300 million a day until Friday, if there is no resolution.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Gov. George Pataki both said on Wednesday workers must end the strike before negotiations can resume, insisting an illegal strike will not profit the union.

In its final offer before talks collapsed, the MTA raised its wage offer and withdrew a proposal to raise the retirement age for new hires to 62 from 55. But it also presented a new proposal to make new hires contribute 6 percent of salary to pension funds, a demand that the union rejected out of hand.


NBC News, The Associated Press, and Reuters contributed to this report.

© 2005 MSNBC.com

URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10555519/
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it's officially, the strike has end. Now, get back on train and bus in NYC to make it alive once again!
 
Heath said:
Details please , man? What is the contract? :deal:
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no deal!

Actually, they need to get their ass back to work, then they will negotiate.

No work. No negotiate. That's simple.
 
Hi, To let you know, I subscribe to AFL-CIO newsletter ....Pah !!! Here is News Flash !!!! This is what exactly is going on....Here is the situation.

" Workers Strike to protect working middle class families "

Just two days ago, 37,200 transit workers went on strike on behalf of all workers whose wages, retirement security and jobs are under attack by their employers.

The New York Metro Transit Authority (MTA) is operating with a $1 billion surplus and is using disinformation, smears and pressure tactics to pit current workers against future employees who would be required to pay 4 percent more toward their pensions than current employees.

The strikers made it clear to the MTA that if they took the increase in pension payments for future employees off the table, they would negotiate. The MTA refused, leaving the transit workers with no alternative.

With a $1 billion surplus, the MTA does not need cuts. Don't let the MTA lower the standards for middle-class workers and pit future employees against existing ones.

While pundits in the news media debate the legitimacy of the strike, our peers on the front lines have shown great courage and sacrifice. We need to show them our full support.

We will keep you updated as events unfold in New York City.

In solidarity,

Working Families e-Activist Network, AFL-CIO
 
That was a complete nightmare! I missed work because of that strike. :(
 
Reiko said:
That was a complete nightmare! I missed work because of that strike. :(
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You are not alone- MN had simiilar situation but it was for I think 8 weeks! I sometimes had to miss classes! I had to depend on people for ride, and I got tired of that..
 
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