SOLIDARITY with Boston School Bus Drivers
USW LOCAL 8751
Don’t Believe the Anti-Union, Labor-Hating, Blame-Shifting LIES of
and other media
The Hard-Working members of Local 8751 Are NOT Engaged in a Labor Action ….YET !
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The responsibility for the school transportation problems of last week, as well as the impending, potentially disastrous Boston Public Schools start-up this week, rests squarely with the notorious, union-busting, global, capitalist giant Transdev (formerly known as Veolia, just awarded a 1-year $44 + million management contract extension) and Boston Public Schools’ Department of Transportation (whose Director, former Veolia Asst. Manager John Roderick, abruptly resigned 3 days prior to last week’s delayed annual bus route bid!).
As the union has stated for years, Transdev and BPS continue to sacrifice safe, on-time, professional school transportation for our children on the altar of corporate greed and vicious ill-advised austerity cuts! Add a healthy dose of Transdev’s gross, worker-hating mismanagement = a recipe for chaos.
KNOW THE FACTS!
The causes for the current crisis are clear. Despite repeated demands from the union, Transdev refused to hire sufficient drivers to cover the work, conducted zero training for new hires this summer and has refused to maintain a pool of “hire ready” drivers to replace retired, sick or deceased workers. Transdev failed to even post for the summer bid those Charter schools currently experiencing problems, failed to quality check routes, leaving 45 open routes after the bid, cut dozens of driver positions from last year, failed to perform driver orientation, etc. Then there is the continuing issue of BPS’s “MIT solution, arrogant, political, algorithm” false routing. As stated in our Class Action grievance regarding this year’s tainted bid, “The BPS designed bids represent a most serious threat to Boston’s students, containing cuts that will disproportionately hurt Boston’s Black and Brown communities, will cut jobs and hours of drivers and have not been “road tested” to guarantee safeguards to prevent overcrowding, insufficient time for stops and travel, routes that follow legal road use restrictions, and account for construction, one way and dead end streets, rush-hour jams, etc.”
USW Local 8751 is at the table in good faith
Unions know that the bosses and their mouthpieces in the media lie! That’s ABC, nothing new. We are an “old school” union, living the motto that “If we can’t get our justice at the table, we will damn sure get it on the picket line”! That said, we opened contract negotiations last spring (our CBA expired June 30, 2018) with Transdev, the worst bosses in our 44 years, whose union-busting practices have led to dozens of “Unfair Labor Practice” charges, nearly 2,000 grievances, and daily attacks on our members. Transdev came to the table with massive concessions, attempting to destroy 40 + years of collective bargaining progress, brutal cuts to our sick and elder drivers, and reductions in wages & hours, benefits, and hard-won union rights. Are we engaging in a labor dispute now? Hell NO! We are at the table with the next negotiations scheduled for Tuesday. Did our members vote unanimously June 21st to authorize a STRIKE? Damn right they did, and we are prepared to “Shut. Transdev. Down!”
Hours prior to the June 30th expiration, the parties reached an extension agreement. Transdev withdrew some of the most onerous concessions, agreed in writing to full retroactivity and resolved some disputes in return for our agreement to continue negotiations through the summer and until such time that the union informs the public we proudly serve of an impending strike. We have never launched a strike without ample notice to the students and parents. Period.
Many mean-spirited, bad-faith Transdev concessions remain. In the Trump-Corporate climate, where companies like Transdev are recording record profits and CEO salaries are through roof, they have refused to bring serious economics to the table.
We ask you, our union community, for your solidarity in fighting for our JUSTICE!
Let Transdev and BPS know, you “Say No to Union Busting. Safety for Children, Justice for Drivers!”
For more information check out our August 27th union bulletin and updates at “Team Solidarity – the Voice of United School Bus Workers” on Facebook and web page, BostonSchoolBusUnion.org.
We are proud to join transportation workers, school workers, healthcare workers, food workers, housing workers, construction workers, office workers, public service workers, life-saving workers, utility workers, youth and street workers, disaster-relief workers, workers in prisons…workers throughout the country and the world fighting for our rights against the racist Trump/Corporate/Militarist attacks!
When We Fight, We Win!
Solidarity Forever!