BART ATU 1555 And SEIUu 1021 Union Officials Put Off Strike Action Despite Regressive Bargaining By BART Bosses & Board

BART ATU 1555 And SEIUu 1021 Union Officials Put Off Strike Action Despite Regressive Bargaining By BART Bosses & Board
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/15/us/bay-area-transit-system-strike.html...
Bay Area Transit System Strike Is Postponed a Day
By ERICA GOODE
Published: October 14, 2013

SAN FRANCISCO — A strike deadline for employees of the Bay Area’s main commuter railroad was postponed another day on Sunday night after labor, which had brought the two sides close to a deal, apparently reached an impasse.

“We are tired and frustrated,” said Pete Castelli, the executive director of the Service Employees International Union Local 1021, one of two unions representing 2,400 employees of Bay Area Rapid Transit, or BART. “But most of all we are sorry — sorry because we were so close to an agreement.”

Union officials said that if no agreement was reached by midnight on Monday, the transit workers would walk out, a disruption that would send the 400,000 daily commuters who use the railroad scrambling for other transportation.

The announcement of the extension came after a day of bargaining that had seemed to promise an end to the long standoff between the unions and the transit system.

But union officials said a “last, best and final” offer put on the table by BART late Sunday afternoon derailed an agreement.

“The offer that was given us today is a regressive offer,” said Antonette Bryant, the president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1555.

Mr. Castelli said the two sides had “made real progress on the issues of pay, pensions and health care benefits” but were still at odds over the issue of work rules and safety.

Grace Crunican, BART’s general manager, said that management’s offer was $7 million higher than an offer it made on Friday night and that the unions had two weeks to take it to their membership for a vote.

The offer, she said, included a 3 percent annual raise, a 4 percent pension increase and a 9.5 percent increase in medical benefits over the life of the contract.

“I really hope that they are going to take it seriously and look at it,” Ms. Crunican said. “It is time to bring this to a close. The Bay Area is tired of going to bed at night and not knowing if BART will be open or not.”

The labor organizations had initially demanded a 5 percent annual wage increase. Management had offered 2 percent.

Although the presentation of a “last, best and final offer” generally signifies an unwillingness to negotiate further, the two sides returned to the bargaining table late Sunday night after their representatives made statements to the news media outside the California Transportation Department building in downtown Oakland, where the talks were being held.

Nancy Skinner, a state assemblywoman from Berkeley, said she hoped that BART would continue to negotiate.

“Yes, it’s been a long time,” she said. “But oftentimes, when the issues are gnarly, it takes time to work it out. We have seen the gap narrowing, and that is a good sign. We’ve seen labor move. We’ve seen BART move.”

According to BART, train operators and station agents earn on average more than $70,000 yearly in salary and overtime. Under the previous contract, transit system employees contributed $92 a month for health benefits and paid nothing toward their pensions. James K. Allison, a spokesman for BART, said, “We have bargained in good faith and will continue to do so.”

For months, Bay Area residents have lived under the threat of an extended transit strike. A four-day strike in July ended with the unions agreeing to a one-month extension of the previous labor contract. In early August, Gov. Jerry Brown ordered a 60-day cooling-off period, which ended at midnight Thursday. Just before that deadline, union officialsannounced their willingness to keep talking. But they gave notice that they would strike on Monday morning if no agreement had been reached by midnight Sunday.

The protracted negotiations have drawn the ire of some residents, who have taken out their frustration in angry Twitter posts and online comments criticizing the unions. A Republican state senator has introduced a bill to make strikes by BART workers illegal. Although many municipalities, including San Francisco, prohibit strikes by transit workers, state law in California allows many public employees to strike.