By a three-to-one margin, transit workers have approved a new contract, ending the six-week strike that shut down the Twin Cities bus system. The settlement ?was the best we could do in this political climate,? said Ron Lloyd, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1005.
Minutes after the vote was announced Friday night, Metro Transit began calling dispatchers, schedule makers and mechanics back to work, so that buses can be rolling by Monday, Lloyd said.
?It?s time to go back to work,? he said. ?Our members will get it done.?
Over two days of voting, Local 1005 members approved the tentative agreement by 72 percent, the union said.
Under the contract, new hires will no longer be eligible for health care coverage when they retire. However, new employees will be able to bank some of their unused sick time to create a health care ?savings account? for when they are no longer employed by Metro Transit.
The union?s 2,200 members will have their wages frozen during the first year of the contract, which covers the period from Aug. 1, 2003, to July 31, 2005. Starting Aug. 1 of this year, workers will get a 1 percent increase, then a 0.5 percent increase next Feb. 1.
Full-time employees will receive a $1,100 signing bonus and part-time workers will receive $600.
?I wish it could be better,? Lloyd said. ?While this tentative agreement has been approved, our members know the struggle to fully resolve these issues is not over.? He said the union would continue its fight for affordable health care and decent wages.
Lloyd thanked bus riders for their patience and sacrifice in the past several weeks.
?We appreciate the ridership that stood by us,? he said. ?We got a lot of support from the riders. A lot of them believe in their drivers.?
Local 1005 Financial Secretary-Treasurer Jerry Ewald noted that bus riders were among the thousands of people who donated more than $108,000 to the union?s strike fund and brought donations to a strike food shelf.
?Average people sending in checks with notes, people dropping off food on a daily basis, it?s really incredible,? he said.
Lloyd said he believed the turning point in the settlement was the involvement of Gov. Tim Pawlenty. On April 7, the same day the Minnesota House rejected a bill to privatize the transit system and thousands of people called the governor?s office to demand action, Pawlenty invited union officers to a meeting. The session lasted more than seven hours.
The governor later joined in the negotiations that resulted in a tentative settlement early Monday.
Pawlenty ?started this in the first place because he controls the budget for the Metropolitan Council? which operates Metro Transit, said Lloyd. ?He was the only one who could solve it.?
The union officers predicted bitterness on both sides following the 44-day walkout, but said these feelings would have to be overcome.
?It?s only 13 months until the next negotiations,? said Lloyd, cracking a smile.
By a three-to-one margin, transit workers have approved a new contract, ending the six-week strike that shut down the Twin Cities bus system. The settlement ?was the best we could do in this political climate,? said Ron Lloyd, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1005.
Minutes after the vote was announced Friday night, Metro Transit began calling dispatchers, schedule makers and mechanics back to work, so that buses can be rolling by Monday, Lloyd said.
?It?s time to go back to work,? he said. ?Our members will get it done.?
Over two days of voting, Local 1005 members approved the tentative agreement by 72 percent, the union said.
Under the contract, new hires will no longer be eligible for health care coverage when they retire. However, new employees will be able to bank some of their unused sick time to create a health care ?savings account? for when they are no longer employed by Metro Transit.
The union?s 2,200 members will have their wages frozen during the first year of the contract, which covers the period from Aug. 1, 2003, to July 31, 2005. Starting Aug. 1 of this year, workers will get a 1 percent increase, then a 0.5 percent increase next Feb. 1.
Full-time employees will receive a $1,100 signing bonus and part-time workers will receive $600.
?I wish it could be better,? Lloyd said. ?While this tentative agreement has been approved, our members know the struggle to fully resolve these issues is not over.? He said the union would continue its fight for affordable health care and decent wages.
Lloyd thanked bus riders for their patience and sacrifice in the past several weeks.
?We appreciate the ridership that stood by us,? he said. ?We got a lot of support from the riders. A lot of them believe in their drivers.?
Local 1005 Financial Secretary-Treasurer Jerry Ewald noted that bus riders were among the thousands of people who donated more than $108,000 to the union?s strike fund and brought donations to a strike food shelf.
?Average people sending in checks with notes, people dropping off food on a daily basis, it?s really incredible,? he said.
Lloyd said he believed the turning point in the settlement was the involvement of Gov. Tim Pawlenty. On April 7, the same day the Minnesota House rejected a bill to privatize the transit system and thousands of people called the governor?s office to demand action, Pawlenty invited union officers to a meeting. The session lasted more than seven hours.
The governor later joined in the negotiations that resulted in a tentative settlement early Monday.
Pawlenty ?started this in the first place because he controls the budget for the Metropolitan Council? which operates Metro Transit, said Lloyd. ?He was the only one who could solve it.?
The union officers predicted bitterness on both sides following the 44-day walkout, but said these feelings would have to be overcome.
?It?s only 13 months until the next negotiations,? said Lloyd, cracking a smile.