The drivers’ offer was delivered at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, as the Burlington City Council was debating a resolution encouraging parties to come to an agreement, CCTA officials said in a statement.
“It is CCTA’s hope that the union’s new compromise proposal will move the discussion forward on the remaining four articles — wages, work rules, security cameras and the use of part-time drivers,” the agency said today. “A fair and respectful negotiation that arrives at a compromise on each of the four remaining issues is CCTA’s preferred course for restoring service to the communities we serve.
“The union’s most recent proposal represents a productive step toward compromise and we expect negotiations with the assistance of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service will be restored very soon,” the CCTA statement read.
CCTA did not release details of the contract offer, and union representatives could not immediately be reached for comment.
Drivers went on strike last Monday, forcing 9,700 daily bus riders, including many lower-income residents, to seek alternate transportation or be stranded.
CCTA leaders have hinted that if an agreement is not reached soon, they might begin to consider alternatives, including pursuing action with the Vermont Labor Board or the court system, or hiring temporary replacement drivers.
Chapin Spencer, one of Burlington’s two representatives on CCTA’s board of directors, told city councilors that the board would likely meet next week to consider possible alternative measures.
Drivers have overwhelmingly rejected CCTA’s previous contract offers. They left a negotiation session last Saturday without an agreement to bring CCTA’s most recent offer to a vote.
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Again, no coverage of the issues. I think this reporter works for CCTA management.
Funny, I was about to leave a comment thanking Seven Days for excellent ongoing coverage on this issue.
It was going to go something like “Thank you for your excellent ongoing coverage on this issue.”
Wouldn’t it be nice to know some of the issues, even better the relevant facts?
Such as:
1) What do the bus drivers make per hour compared to those of other municipalities?
2) Same vein: How do their benefits compare to their kindred workers elsewhere?
3) What are the sticking points?
4) One sticking point is the cameras on the buses. Given that recent research has shown that dashboard cams vindicate police against ambulance-chasing lawyers NINETY PERCENT of the time, what possible reason do the drivers have to not want them on board?
Without such information how can we, the public, who subsidize CCTA with our taxes, know who’s right or wrong?
Eric Johnson
On March 17, 2014 CCTA bus drivers represented by Teamsters Local 597 went on strike. This would be the first strike in the history of The Chittenden County Transportation Authority.
The management of CCTA led by General Manager Bill Watterson and Director of Operations Timothy Bradshaw immediately began their campaign of deception by claiming that this strike was about money or compensation!
The drivers and Local, working in close cooperation with The Vermont Workers Center immediately launched a comprehensive strike plan. With support form many other labor organizations, as well as activist groups including the International Socialist Organization, the drivers, began to inform and educate the community. In fact much of this groundwork had been laid weeks before.
The Authority launched a disinformation campaign in the press as well as a calculated campaign to pressure the drivers to accept binding arbitration.
It was at this time in my opinion that CCTA set about to execute a calculated plan to hold not only their employees, but in fact the entire bus riding populace of the communities which CCTA serves, hostage. This strike became about an entire community held hostage.
CCTA management stated early on that they needed to receive proposals from the drivers. The fact is our proposals were already in their hands, they knew why we were walking and it had nothing to do with money. GM Bill Watterson early on started a media blitz suggesting that this was all about money. The media went along with it for some unaccountable reason.
The Union Team acting to end the strike and get drivers and passengers back on the job told management they would meet at any time to discuss the contract. CCTA management insisted they would not meet without a mediator. The earliest the mediator would be available would be Friday, March 21.
Understand that at no point in time did the union refuse to meet with management, nor to provide them with any and all proposals to end the strike. It was management which stalled and failed to provide communication. It was management which demanded a mediator (even though it was known that a mediator would only be available late in the week)!
After the mediator said they would be available on Friday, March 21 CCTA suddenly changed tack and said they would only be available on Saturday, March 22. The Union team communicated several time they were available any time but CCTA insisted on the Saturday meeting.
CCTA then began to demand the 4 open contract articles which had led to the strike be submitted to them before the Saturday meeting. The Union once again taking the high road decided to comply with those demands.
On Wednesday evening after several meetings with drivers the final acceptable proposals were sent to CCTA management. After that nothing was heard from CCTA.
The meeting time on Saturday, March 22 was decided to be 1:30pm at an undisclosed location. The Union negotiation team was on time, and the CCTA team was not. At 4:18pm the CCTA team deigned to make an appearance. They gave the Union team 3 of the 4 articles in contention. The Union team looked at and discussed these items and had counter proposals to offer and asked to be given article 6 in writing. CCTA refused. After some time had passed the Union team had had enough. They had shown up on time, CCTA had not! They had been prepared, CCTA had not! Finally just as it had been from the beginning..The Union negotiation team had shown up prepared to bargain in good faith! And CCTA’s team had not.
The Union team walked out!
At this point the CCTA team continued to hammer out the message that money was a key issue. They once again began the drumbeat of “We are waiting for the Unions proposals”! The contention of the Union was since they had never received Article 6 to review they had nothing to respond to!
Finally on Wednesday, March 26 the Union team was made aware that the company had posted their counter-proposal to Article 6 on March, 22 2014. They had posted this response on their website without notifying the Union team! They were playing games with the lives and livelihoods of community members everywhere! This act is a failure to bargain in good faith.
Failure to bargain in good faith includes delaying meetings, and refusing to meet!
CCTA was bargaining in bad faith!
Why would they do such a thing? Why would CCTA hold an entire community hostage? Why would CCTA post a negotiation response online instead of in person, or email or other more tangible and positive method to the Union team?
Delay! Wait for the solidarity to weaken! Separate the public (whose support was overwhelmingly pro driver) from the drivers! Simply let the community stew! How truly cruel and pathetic!
So now as we are waiting for the final moment to play out. The denouement, has occurred! It occurred on Wednesday, March 26 when some 12 drivers and 38 community members stood up in a Burlington City Council meeting and said…Enough is Enough!
Courageous drivers testified to the working conditions at CCTA! Members of the community gathered around those drivers to offer support and express concern for what was happening. And the City Council saw the light and stated clearly they did not support binding arbitration (a solution which would have nullified all the justice the drivers were seeking), and instead called on continued negotiations. Negotiations which will continue so the issue remains in doubt…….
The contract is still in doubt. We are ready and waiting to work! We are the drivers of CCTA. We stand ready to work in snow and sleet and ice and heat! We are proud we stood for respect and dignity in the workplace! We will apologize to no one for our stand!
We have stood up for workers rights everywhere! We meshed with the community and we are better for it! We negotiated in good faith, and we followed the rules and sought the best for everyone! We are not greedy! We are committed to the safety of our passengers! We are committed to customer service! And we are committed to the future of Transit in Vermont!
Can Bill Watterson and Tim Bradshaw say that? Can they?
James G. Fouts
Driver #705