Bargaining stances harden in MTA strike 

Labor: Officials tell drivers union leader that talks are at impasse. Mechanics union chief rescinds last week's request that members go back to work. 

By Richard Winton and Douglas P. Shuit Los Angeles Times

LOS ANGELES -- Both sides in the 4-week-old Metropolitan Transportation Authority strike have fired warning shots at each other over the last 24 hours, promising an escalation in a bitter conflict that is already setting new standards in the stormy history of Los Angeles transit walkouts.

First came the announcement Tuesday night by the MTA's chief executive officer, Julian Burke, that he had given the striking United Transportation Union, which represents 4,400 bus drivers and rail operators, his "last, best and final offer."

Then, on Wednesday, the strike's 26th day, Neil Silver, president of the mechanics' Amalgamated Transit Union, rescinded last week's directive asking members to cross picket lines and return to work.

"I'm asking all my members to honor the UTU's picket lines," Silver said after a big rally at Burbank's Pickwick Center.

The announcement carried none of the punch of last week's directive, since few of the mechanics he represents crossed the picket lines anyway.

But for Silver, the decision to ask his members to honor the picket lines was nonetheless an important step. He said he will meet with MTA negotiators today but he indicated clearly that he is growing impatient with the talks' stalemate. Making a point with a bit of humor, he said:

"I am going to give the MTA my last, best, final offer and if they don't accept it, I'm going to mail that offer to the [transit agency's] board of directors, and if they don't accept that, I'm mailing it to their parents."

In addition to receiving what Burke described as a final offer Tuesday, United Transportation Union President James Williams got a letter from the MTA, saying the stalemated talks were at an impasse.

Burke said he would give Williams until 9 a.m. today to respond to the latest contract offer. A spokesman said Wednesday that the union chief and his staff were studying the proposal and would not comment on it.

The words "impasse" and "last, best and final offer" are legally loaded terms in labor negotiations, and raised questions about how far the MTA is willing to go to get its buses back on the road.

The characterizations could open the door--if the drivers continue their walkout without accepting the contract being offered to them--to the hiring of replacement drivers, according to most common interpretations.

At the very least, Burke said that if Williams rejects the offer, he will take the proposed contract directly to the 4,400 members of the drivers union. Already plans are underway to use MTA management, phone banks and the Internet to get the proposed contract out.

Another option would be for the MTA to try to bring in a third party, such as a federal mediator. Previous proposals by MTA officials to use a federal mediator have been rebuffed by Williams. A state mediator already has intervened unsuccessfully in the talks.

Making a last and final offer, said Kent Wong, director of the UCLA Center for Labor Research and Education, "is an escalation. It puts you in a box and ends talks with the other side, because you're saying there is no point to further negotiations."

Replacing Workers Would Be Complicated

In the private sector, labor experts say, a last, best and final offer, if there has been good-faith bargaining, can mean the employer can impose a contract unilaterally and require employees to accept it or lose their jobs.

Replacement workers willing to work under the terms of unilaterally imposed contracts are common in the private sector, but experts say the fact that the MTA strike involves public employees complicates things tremendously.

For one thing, according to Ray Huffer of the Transportation Communications Union, which represents dispatchers and clerical workers, much of the MTA's funding comes from federal and state governments, and conditions attached to the money could prevent something like the hiring of replacement workers during a strike.

"They must continue to negotiate," Huffer said.

That brings up another possibility: The drivers union could decide that the MTA isn't willing to play hardball, assume Burke is bluffing and call him on it.

That was a position being put forward by mechanics who attended a big rally in Burbank.

One mechanics union official said, "Jim Williams was given a deadline. Yeah? So what? They are firing blanks right now."

At this point, the MTA is unwilling to concede that developments will ever reach a point at which they would hire replacement drivers.

At no time in the history of the MTA, or its predecessor agency, the Southern California Rapid Transit District, has the agency hired strike breakers, according to MTA historians.

But the agency has never before declared an impasse either.

For that matter, it has been 26 years since the Amalgamated Transit Union, which represents nearly 2,000 mechanics who are supporting the drivers' walkout, had to hand out strike benefits to mechanics.

Officials from Amalgamated's international union flew in from Washington, D.C., to show support for Silver and the union at the rally Wednesday.

During the event, what seemed like nearly the union's entire membership showed up, in part to receive $100 weekly benefit checks. Officials said the last time members received strike benefits was in 1974.

About 700 bags of groceries were also distributed to union members.

Meanwhile, the MTA said buses were running on two "lifeline" routes, Nos. 30 and 214, along Central Los Angeles corridors without incident Wednesday. This week, the rear window of one bus was broken, nails were thrown in the path of another and another bus was chased by what MTA spokesmen said were 25 to 30 picketers.

MTA releases details of "last, best and final offer" UTU members

LOS ANGELES -- The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) yesterday decided to share the details of its so-called "Last, Best and Final Offer" directly with the members of the bus and rail operators' union, the United Transportation Union (UTU).

In a release posted on its website, MTA said the UTU's refusal to accept its offer Thursday morning (Oct. 12, 2000) left the agency with no other choice than to approach the members directly.

"We are disappointed that the leadership of the UTU has refused to accept this fair and attractive offer," said MTA Chief Executive Officer Julian Burke. "The decision should be in the hands of the employees themselves. The MTA cannot just sit by and let the union leadership hold Los Angeles County hostage."

"This offer is fair and progressive. It protects our workers' wages and benefits, and allows the MTA to make improvements in operations to enhance efficiency and productivity," said MTA Chair Yvonne Brathwaite Burke. "It is obvious to us that the union leadership has not fully comprehended what a great offer this. Whatever the reason, we firmly believe that employees will appreciate how this offer will make their lives better - an offer that is better than the contract they approved three years ago."

This MTA's said its final offer emerged after more than five months of unsuccessful attempts by MTA negotiators to get the UTU to bargain seriously. MTA's website posting said the UTU leadership's repeated delays and cancellations of negotiating sessions prohibited any substantive discussions throughout most of the bargaining. In fact, MTA claimed, it was not until several weeks into the strike and after several comprehensive package proposals from the MTA that the UTU leadership even offered a written response.

"This final MTA offer incorporates elements designed to ensure quick approval from UTU members, including the MTA's agreement to take several of its cost-saving proposals 'off the table,'" MTA's website said. "The offer includes preserving work rules that guarantee most current scheduling practices. In addition, the offer includes a 10% increase in take-home pay for full-time operators by the end of the three-year contract. Full-time operators already make an average of $50,000 a year."

MTA said highlights of of its final proposal include:

"We believe that our employees will like what we have offered once they get the facts. We want them to talk to their union representatives and encourage the UTU leadership to change its mind and accept the offer. We must get our employees back to work and get the trains and busses rolling again," added CEO Burke.

The MTA has sent a copy of the summary of the contract proposal to UTU members' homes and is posting it on the agency's Web site. Over the next several days, MTA managers will communicate directly with UTU members to ensure that they fully appreciate the benefits being provided. As progress is made, MTA officials will keep the public posted.

Summary of MTA's Last, Best & Final Offer

(posted on the MTA's website October 12, 2000)

Term 
Three Year Contract: Commencing July 1, 2000 and ending June 30, 2003

Wages 
9.3% pay increase:3% increase per year for three years, compounded annually, effective upon contract ratification by the Union and MTA

Pension 
1% pension pick-up: MTA to pick up 1% of employee's pension contribution to the thirty-and-out base plan beginning January 1, 2001, resulting in an increase of 1% in take-home pay for full-time Operators

Change in earnings assumption: Based on the UTU's proposal and MTA's concurrence, changes pension plan earnings assumption from 8% to 8.5%

Health Benefits 
Maintain health benefits: UTU employee health and welfare benefits are maintained under the MTA's proposal

MTA contributions to be increased as necessary: MTA will increase its health and welfare payments, as necessary, for each employee upon determination, through audited financial reports and an assessment of the plan benefits, that the Health and Welfare Trust Reserves have reached a level capable of providing five or less months of benefits

Zones 
Contract protections carried over: Articles 7 and 51 have not been changed except to add a new provision which provides that the MTA may transfer service to a zone and that the protections provided by SB1101 (new state law) will constitute "adequate provision" and "adequate protection" to employees

Full-time Operators 
Increase of 10-hour straight, 4-day workweeks: Increase from current 45 runs to 100 runs with straight pay for 10-hours, subject to overtime pay after 10 hours, 4-days a week. Days off for these assignments will be guaranteed to be either Friday, Saturday and Sunday or Saturday, Sunday and Monday

Pilot Program for Split shift 4-day/10-hour workweek: Implement a pilot program to schedule 50 runs with 4-day, 10 hours pay within 12 hours a day, subject to overtime pay after 12 hours, beginning with the system-wide shake-up in December, 2001.Days off for these assignments will be guaranteed to be either Friday, Saturday and Sunday or Saturday, Sunday and Monday

Part-time operators to provide additional relief: Add 150 part-time operators to work in relief of those "4/10" full-time operators on their days off. These part-time operators can be scheduled on straight or split assignments as necessary only to cover the full-time operators' schedules.

Preservation of "8 within 10" rule: Full-time operators working traditional five-day work weeks on regular and relief runs will continue to benefit from the "eight within ten" spread and overtime pay provisions

Preservation of "8 within 11" rule: Full-time operators working the extra board will continue to benefit from the "eight within eleven" spread and overtime pay provisions

Preservation of "7 within 9" Rule: This rule remains in the contract, but is "relaxed" only to permit the creation of enough work for part-time and BDOF operators

Assignments with weekends off: The percentage of runs with weekends off as of the June 2000 shake-up will be maintained. This equates to 45% of all runs, allocated on a system-wide, rather than per-division basis

No Layoffs: Although the ranks of part-time operators will be increased in part to provide coverage for expanded "4/10" work weeks, this increase will be paced to match attrition and will result in no layoffs or demotions

Part-Time Operators 
Increase in part-time operators: In addition to the 150 additional part-time operators needed for the 4/10 implementation, 325 new part-time operators will be hired. The hiring of these operators will be phased in over the 3-year life of the contract (75 in fiscal year 2001, 100 in 2002, and 150 in 2003)

Increase in number of hours per day: Part-time operators will now be able to work up to 6 hours, 59 minutes per day on trippers any day of the week and provide relief for full-time operators on weekends and for "4/10" operators on their off days (Friday through Monday)

Increase in number of hours per week: Part-time operators will now be able to work an average of up to 34 hours and 50 minutes per week system-wide, with a maximum of 36 hours. Part-time operators will be paid for time worked only. No minimums, pay guarantees, or penalty provisions will apply

Split shifts: Part-time operators will work straight trippers Sunday through Saturday. And when working in relief of full-time operators, part-time operators may work straight or split assignments

Work on Days Off: No longer restricted to Saturday and Sunday only, part-time operators will now be eligible to volunteer for work on any of their scheduled or assigned days off

New wage tier: Wage rates for all current part-time operators will be increased. Only newly-hired part-time operators will be subject to a new, lower wage tier

BDOF 
BDOF promotions to part-time: All current BDOF operators to be promoted to part-time as soon as possible, but no later than January 2, 2001

Automatic promotion rights: BDOF operators will have automatic promotion rights to part-time

Wage protection: Existing BDOF operators will be "grandfathered", and as a result when promoted to part-time will not be subject to the new lower wage tier for new part-time employees

Increased number of BDOF operators: The total number of BDOF operators will be increased over the 3 years of the contract to 300 (up from existing 133)

Holiday pay: Pay for legal holidays will be increased to the time-and-one-half rate

Assignments to be mutually agreed upon: MTA and UTU to mutually determine which lines/service will be BDOF. If the parties cannot agree within 30 days, the MTA may select and implement the lines

Prep/Turn-In Time 
Reduction of pre-trip inspection time (Bus only): Vehicle pre-trip inspection procedures have been redefined and reduced, allowing for a reduction of 7 minutes in pre-trip inspection time (from 20 minutes to 13 minutes)

Reduction of walk-in time (Bus only): Reduction of 2 minutes in "walk-in" time for pull-ins (from 5 minutes to 3 minutes) to more accurately reflect time required to walk from vaulting station to the dispatch window

Missouts 
Revision of miss-out rule: Missouts have increased more then 36% over the past two years. The MTA and the Union agree to work together on a plan to reduce missouts. If MTA and UTU representatives are unable to implement a plan by January 1, 2002, the current miss-out rule will be revised to clear missouts using the same 60 day clearing mechanism provided for in the attendance policy

Grievance Appeal Processes 
Second and Third Level Appeal and Accident Review Processes: MTA and Union representatives agree to meet for the purpose of reviewing and agreeing on a plan to streamline and improve the 2nd and 3rd level appeals processes and the procedure for reviewing accidents

Uniform Allowance 
Increased uniform stipend: Every operator will receive an increase of $25 in each of the 3 years of the contract, beginning with $200 in fiscal year 2001, increasing to $225 in fiscal year 2002, and $250 in fiscal year 2003

Line Instructor/Mentor Pay 
Increase hourly pay: Pay for qualified and certified Line Instructor/Mentors will be increased from $1.25 per hour to $2.00 per hour for time spent training student operators

Temporary Schedule Checkers 
Select temporary Schedule Checkers: The MTA and UTU will appoint a committee to identify a method to select full and/or part-time operators to serve as temporary "Special Project" Schedule Checkers

Workers Compensation 
Joint training and safety campaign: MTA and UTU to jointly implement a Workers' Compensation campaign to include Training, Safety Committee, Ombudsman Program, Physician Network and Workers' Compensation handbook in an effort to reduce workplace injuries and improve the timeliness of assistance to injured workers

Side Letters 
Review side agreements: A review of all prior side agreements will be conducted by the MTA and the UTU before December 31, 2000, to determine which side letters are still applicable and will be carried forward

All other contract provisions are either identical to the 1997-2000 UTU contract or only minor changes were made to reflect current practice. Details of these changes can be obtained from UTU leadership.

MTA responds to union's false accusations; contract offer designed to create more full-time jobs

(released to the news media by MTA on October 12, 2000) 

LOS ANGELES -- The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) today responded to misleading statements made by the bus and rail operators' union, the United Transportation Union (UTU), regarding the MTA's Last, Best and Final offer. UTU representatives falsely accused the MTA of trying to "bust" the union and reduce the number of full-time operators by hiring part-time operators.

In fact, the MTA's offer contemplates expansion of the MTA's full-time employment opportunities during the three-year term of the contract. The agency's efforts to reduce the cost of operating buses would allow the MTA the opportunity to expand transit service and hire additional full-time operators. The proposal does include the hiring of 475 additional part-time operators, with a cap of a total of 1,125 part-time operators. However, the MTA anticipates that any temporary reduction in full-time positions would more than be made up by the need to add new full-time positions as MTA expands its service.

"What is really outrageous about the UTU's complaint about our proposal to increase the number of part-time positions is that it builds on one of the few cost-saving proposals that UTU offered the MTA over the last few days," said MTA Chief Executive Officer Julian Burke. "We assumed that if they offered it to us, they would accept it when we gave it back to them." In its written proposal to MTA, UTU suggested adding almost 300 part-time positions to the agency's current base of 650 part-time positions.

Most importantly, there are no layoffs under the current proposal. Based on the MTA's conservative service expansion projections over the next three years, the agency stands to hire many more full-time operators. However, even if the MTA did not expand service, a maximum of 165 full-time positions may be converted to part-time positions as those full-time positions are gradually vacated through retirement or attrition. However, it is extremely unlikely that such a circumstance would occur.

Accusations that the MTA desires to "break" the UTU are completely false. "We tried to approach these negotiations in a collaborative process," said CEO Burke. "We have invested hundreds of days and thousands of hours in this process. From the very beginning, we thought that if we got the union to the bargaining table as early as possible, we could ensure a peaceful settlement. Instead, the UTU's constant delays and cancellations of bargaining sessions indicates to us that they never intended on settling these contract negotiations peacefully," CEO Burke added.

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Last modified: October 13, 2000