Mass transit strike hits NY

New York transit workers walked off the job for the first time in 25 years on Tuesday stranding millions of people who rely on bus and subwa...

New York transit workers walked off the job for the first time in 25 years on Tuesday stranding millions of people who rely on bus and subway systems daily. Last-ditch talks between the Transport Workers Union andthe state-run Metropolitan Transportation Authority collapsed shortly before a 12:01 AM strike deadline when the Union rejected the MTA’s offer and left the bargaining table.

“Transit workers are tired of being underappreciated and disrespected,” TWU Chief Roger Toussaint said in announcing the walkout about three hours after the deadline. “The Local 100 has voted overwhelmingly to extend strike action to all MTA properties immediately,” he added referring to the Union that represents 34,000 transit workers. The strike shut down the entire subway and bus system, which carries 7 million daily passengers, and promised to cause an arduous if not chaotic morning rush hour. As dawn approached, police set up checkpoints as part of a plan to ban cars carrying fewer than four people from midtown Manhattan. The city has contingency plans such as strict car pool rules to help avoid gridlock.

The walkout violates a state law prohibiting strikes by public employees, and Union members could face heavy fines.

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“They should all go to jail,” said Jim Giannella, 53, standing outside a Times Square station closed off with red tape. “They should have sat there and stayed on the job. It’s just going to make everyone miserable,” he added.

At the height of the holiday season when shoppers and tourists tend to fill the city, the strike could cost the city as much as $400 million a day, officials have warned.

“This means better conditions,” said striking bus cleaner Everick Jacobs, 57, at a depot in Manhattan. “I feel sorry for the people, but we have got to stand up for ourselves.” he added. Minutes after the Union announced the walkout, Mayor Michael Bloomberg denounced the strike as “illegal and morally reprehensible” and a “cowardly attempt” by the Union to gain leverage at the bargaining table.

“We cannot give the TWU the satisfaction of causing the havoc they desperately seek to create,” the mayor said.

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“We cannot let inconveniences, as massive as they are, stop our economy, shut down our schools or jeopardize public safety.” Attorneys for the MTA and the city immediately requested anemergency court hearing to seek a contempt ruling against the Union and ask the court to impose heavy fines on the Union and its members, Bloomberg said.

MTA Chairman Peter Kalikow called the strike “bullying tactics.”

“I guarantee the public that we will take every necessary step to bring this illegal act to an end as quickly as possible,” he told reporters.

The last strike against the transit system was in 1980 and lasted 11 days. The Union and management have been battling over wage hikes, health care and pension costs and employees’ retirement age. The Union disputed the MTA’s contention that cutbacks in benefits are necessary, noting the agency has a $1 billion surplus.

MTA spokesman Tom Kelly said the agency “put a fair offer on the negotiating table. The MTA remains ready to continue negotiations,” he said late on Monday. —Reuters

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