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MCTS union members reject contract offer
Milwaukee County Transit System union members voted overwhelmingly to reject the latest contract offer on Friday.
MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee County Transit System union members voted overwhelmingly to reject the latest contract offer on Friday.
The backstory:
The transit union president said 90% of union members voted to deny the one-year contract. Now, it's back to the bargaining table – but a strike remains possible.
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Bus drivers and mechanics approved a potential strike last week after months of negotiations without agreeing on a new contract. The union and MCTS continued to negotiate and, eventually, both sides reached an offer for a one-year deal instead of the three-year deal that was initially being negotiated.
Union members voted on and rejected that one-year offer on Friday. The union would not disclose details of what was offered from the bus company.
Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU)
What they're saying:
Union President Bruce Freeman said, moving forward, they will only be coming to the table to negotiate three-year contracts. The negotiations have been focused on not only wages but better security.
"We don’t really have a timeframe for that," Freeman said of a possible strike. "If we get back to negotiations, and we see some progress, that kind of eases the talk of the strike.
"If we continue to go at the rate we are going, I mean, we’ve been at the table since the end of January, and we have very little accomplished."
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In a statement, MCTS said:
"We’re disappointed that a contract has not been reached, but we respect the rights of our employees. Our goal hasn’t changed—we want a fair, sustainable agreement for our bus operators, mechanics, and cleaner/tankers that allows us to keep MCTS running smoothly for the riders who depend on us. We look forward to continuing talks with the Union."
Freeman also said negotiations could potentially continue next week.
Dig deeper:
As it relates to the negotiation topic of improved security, Freeman told FOX6 that a rider attacked a 70-year-old bus driver on Friday. FOX6 News reached out to the Milwaukee Police Department but did not immediately hear back.
Freeman said the bus driver was taken to a hospital and is expected to be OK.
The Source: FOX6 News interviewed the union president and referenced prior coverage of contract negotiations between the union and MCTS.