NYC workers strike

[Green]

union members with some cajones....


NEW YORK - Subways and buses ground to a halt Tuesday morning as transit workers walked off the job at the height of the holiday shopping and tourist season, forcing millions of riders to find new ways to get around. Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who had said the strike would cost the city as much as $400 million a day, joined the throngs of people crossing the Brooklyn Bridge as he walked from a Brooklyn emergency headquarters to City Hall.

 

[NEDude]

Talk about king sized cajones.

They struck in violation of the law and a court order. Imagine if airline pilots had the same cajones.

 

[Flyerjosh]

Maybe in violation of the law and a court order, but this shows that a true union with the guts to stand up for what they believe in can still have a huge impact, regardless of the RLA or courts.

Think about what would happen if ALPA had the guts to stand up as a whole and walked off the job for just one day country wide...

 

[Zipperhead]

As long as ALPA is the representing union for most airline pilots, this will NEVER happen. ALPA is gutless...

 

[StaySeated]

Gents, why do people repeatedly go down this road. Was it a difficult and curageous decision to take this action, of course. However, any comparison between this and an aviation labor group just doesn't make sense. The Transit Workers Union no longer has a contract, it expired last week. Our contracts do not expire, they become amendable. There was no court order to prevent this and the TWU is not breaking any laws. Most importantly, the TWU has leverage. They work for a government entity that had a huge surplus last year. Notice I referred to it as a surplus and not a profit. As a line item on the state budget the MTA has an annual surplus or deficit. They are not a "for profit", free market entity. This strike will not cause the MTA to liquidate or go out of business.

Now, forget about the nuances of the RLA or this labor group. If we strike today as airline pilots, we will most likely eliminate the existance of our airline. This is a generalization, but the point remains the same. If your point is to strike for better pay and work rules, you will not meet your objective in todays economic climate. If your point is to bring the company down, you will succeed with flying colors. Instead of talking about the "big balls" of our teamster friends, go read a book or two about the history of airline labor and the success rate of self help. This is not ancient history. We are only talking about a few decades here. Or better yet, volunteer for your negotiating committee and learn about all of this first hand. It is my opinion that you get once b1tch and one b1tch only. If your one and only complaint did not result in the effect you desired, then you take charge and make it happen. Don't like your contract, change it. Don't like alpa, run for office or start a recall of your current officers and then run. If you get off your ass you can actually get something done, until then, quit b1tching.

 

[Networ-King]

Gents, why do people repeatedly go down this road. Was it a difficult and curageous decision to take this action, of course. However, any comparison between this and an aviation labor group just doesn't make sense. The Transit Workers Union no longer has a contract, it expired last week. Our contracts do not expire, they become amendable. There was no court order to prevent this and the TWU is not breaking any laws. Most importantly, the TWU has leverage. They work for a government entity that had a huge surplus last year. Notice I referred to it as a surplus and not a profit. As a line item on the state budget the MTA has an annual surplus or deficit. They are not a "for profit", free market entity. This strike will not cause the MTA to liquidate or go out of business.

Now, forget about the nuances of the RLA or this labor group. If we strike today as airline pilots, we will most likely eliminate the existance of our airline. This is a generalization, but the point remains the same. If your point is to strike for better pay and work rules, you will not meet your objective in todays economic climate. If your point is to bring the company down, you will succeed with flying colors. Instead of talking about the "big balls" of our teamster friends, go read a book or two about the history of airline labor and the success rate of self help. This is not ancient history. We are only talking about a few decades here. Or better yet, volunteer for your negotiating committee and learn about all of this first hand. It is my opinion that you get once b1tch and one b1tch only. If your one and only complaint did not result in the effect you desired, then you take charge and make it happen. Don't like your contract, change it. Don't like alpa, run for office or start a recall of your current officers and then run. If you get off your ass you can actually get something done, until then, quit b1tching.

BLAH BLAH BLAH.....BLAHBITTY BLAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!!!!! Corruption runs deep in ALPA and eventhough individuals have been recalled and new members have been voted in the corruption still runs deep. When is enough enough... till all airline pilots work for min wage.... don't you agree that its gotta stop somewhere? I forget where I heard this, but its 100% true,


"the day we are not willing to shut the company down is the day we stop being a union"

you may disagree, but I think this is why alpa has turned into such pu$$%*$. Woerthless and his bunkees are 100% corrupt and people are already sick and tired of it. Replace them???? The new guys will be bought too....no such think as an honest politician.

"quit bitching?" why? We're pilots.... its what we do best remember

 

[Vingus]

As long as ALPA is the representing union for most airline pilots, this will NEVER happen. ALPA is gutless...

Yet you keep paying your 2%.....

 

[Zmanav8r]

Actually they are breaking the law. I believe it is called the Taylor law.

 

[coogebeachhotel]

Actually they are breaking the law. I believe it is called the Taylor law.

The guys chucking tea into the Boston Harbor were also breaking the law

 

[miles otoole]

The guys chucking tea into the Boston Harbor were also breaking the law

Lovely analogy, but..............NO.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/12/20/nyc.transit/index.html

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Millions of New York commuters are preparing to battle their way home in near-freezing temperatures during a strike by transit workers, which Tuesday afternoon was ruled illegal by a judge.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg lashed out at union leaders for "thuggishly" turning their backs on the city, adding the strike could cost the city more than $400 million a day.
"You can't break the law and use that as a negotiating tactic," he said at an afternoon news conference. "This is unconscionable," he added.
Judge Theodore Jones ruled Tuesday afternoon that the Transport Workers Union was in contempt of a court injunction for going on strike, and he ordered that the union be fined $1 million per day beginning Tuesday
Bloomberg urged the union's 30,000-plus members to return to work as soon as possible, and drawing a hard line, said the city would not negotiate with the union until then.