UTU Bus News Digest - November, 1998

UTU Bus Department News Digest
Information of interest to transportation employees November, 1998

Supreme Court Unanimously Backs Union in Dispute Over Security Clause

The U.S. Supreme Court holds unanimously that the Screen Actors Guild did not breach its duty of fair representation by negotiating a union security clause requiring membership in good standing and payment of dues and initiation fees. Affirming a decision by the Ninth Circuit, the Supreme Court holds that merely negotiating a provision that borrows language directly from Section 8 (a) (3) of the National Labor Relations Act but does not explain court decisions interpreting that section does not breach a union's duty.

Justice O'Connor rejects the contention that "even if the union has an exemplary notification procedure and even if the union enforces the union security clause in perfect conformity with federal law, the mere negotiation of a union security clause that tracks the language of the NLRA breaches the duty of fair representation." The court also rules that the National Labor Relations Board has exclusive jurisdiction over plaintiff Naomi Marquez's claim that SAG illegally interpreted a contract provision for a 30-day grace period to apply to any employment in the motion picture industry, as opposed to each separate job. Full Text of Decision (11/4/98 Daily Labor Report)

Los Angeles Red Line subway project saved again!

California - The Los Angeles Red Line subway project was saved again two weeks ago when Congress approved spending $62 million to continue construction on the North Hollywood segment, which is scheduled to begin operating in May 2000. The annual transportation spending bill also includes $3 million in discretionary funding to buy new buses and $8 million for a regional transit study and preliminary design for transportation projects in the Eastside and Mid-City areas of Los Angeles. The North Hollywood segment is a 6.3 mile subway leg that is part of the 17.4 mile Red Line project. (11/4/98 Urban Transit News)

High-tech Bus Training System

After a debut in New Jersey, a high-tech bus training system is being tried out in Cleveland.

Cleveland transit officials say the virtual reality simulator can cut driver training by a week, give immediate feedback on how well trainees are doing and eliminate many of the risks involved in training drivers on the street in buses.

The simulator, which was unveiled two weeks ago by the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA), is housed in three rooms. The first part is the "Vehicle Maneuvering Trainer," an interactive computer-based system with a replica of the front of a bus in one room. It is connected by computer and video screens to a second room.

The second room contains a miniature city. The miniature city has a two-foot model bus equipped with video cameras and electronic arms connected to the replica bus in the first room. When the driver turns, the model bus turns. When the driver stops, the model bus stops. If the driver steers into a curb, the entire replica bus shakes.

In the second part of the system, trainee operators watch a large video screen in the front of a room that displays different driving scenarios. The trainees sit a realistic driving stations and try to maneuver through the scenarios.

An instructor at a computer station in the back of the room controls the scenarios and gets instant computerized feedback on how each trainee is doing. (11/4/98 Urban Transit News)