New York hit by massive transport strike

A woman on a scooter makes her way down a remarkably quiet Fifth Avenue in New York this morning. New York transit workers walked off the job for the first time in 25 years. Picture / Reuters

NEW YORK - New York transit workers walked off the job for the first time in 25 years yesterday after contract talks failed, stranding millions of people who rely on the bus and subway system each day.

The strike came after the Transport Workers Union rejected an offer from the state-run Metropolitan Transportation Authority late on Monday local time, shortly before a midnight deadline when the union had said its 34,000 members would walk out if there was no deal.

"Transit workers are tired of being underappreciated and disrespected," TWU chief Roger Toussaint told an early morning news conference after days of unproductive talks over worker benefits.

"The Local 100 has voted overwhelmingly to extend strike action to all MTA properties immediately," he added, referring to the local union.

The strike will shut down the entire subway and bus system, which carries 7 million daily passengers.

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 US$400 million ($582 million) a day, city officials have warned.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg quickly 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 at a news conference.

"We cannot let inconveniences, as massive as they are, stop our economy, shut down our schools or jeopardize public safety."

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 striking union members could face heavy fines.

Attorneys for the MTA and the city immediately requested an emergency 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 US$1 billion surplus.

"With a US$1 billion dollar surplus, this contract between the MTA and the Transport Workers Union should have been a no-brainer. Sadly that has not been the case," Toussaint said.
"New Yorkers, this is a fight over whether hard work will be rewarded with a decent retirement," he said. "This is a fight over dignity and respect for the job, a concept that is very alien to the MTA."

The MTA wants new hires to pay part of their pension and health-care costs and would raise their retirement age to 62 from 55.

MTA spokesman Tom Kelly said late on Monday that the agency "put a fair offer on the negotiating table".

"Unfortunately, that offer has been rejected by the Transport Workers Union," Kelly said. "The MTA remains ready to continue negotiations."

- REUTERS