Dec 5, 2007 6:02 pm US/Central
CTA Union Boss Threatens Work Stoppage
Job Action Could Happen Before Christmas Unless Funding Deal Is Reached
CHICAGO, Ill. (CBS) ―
If you ride Chicago's trains and buses, beware of a grim warning from CTA union leaders.
As CBS 2 Political Editor Mike Flannery reports, angry transit workers could shut down trains and buses with a strike just before Christmas unless the system's financial troubles are solved soon.
In the midst of Wednesday's snowy commute, the last thing riders wanted to hear was that they might soon be stranded by a transit strike.
"If I were them, I'd strike, too. It's a flippin' joke," CTA rider Stephanie Sylvester said. "I'll have trouble getting to work. Everyone's going to have trouble getting to work. And it's the holidays," she added.
The president of unionized rapid transit workers announced the threat of a job action at a news conference originally convened by Mayor Daley.
"We don't know what type of job action it's going to be at this particular point. And hopefully, hopefully, it won't have to happen," union president Rick Harris said. "We cannot afford to wait. This spring, the health care part of our pension will be completely bankrupt."
Transit workers are also angry because more than 2,000 of them face layoff next month at the CTA alone. While denouncing the prospect of a strike, the system's president tried to sound empathetic.
"We will not tolerate a job action. It is not legal or appropriate. That being said, we are very sympathetic," CTA President Ron Huberman.
"I think it's a bad idea. I just don't see why, in the third-populated city in the U.S. like Chicago, that we have such a problem with public transportation," CTA rider Kevin Tyler said.
Unless state officials act by December 31, contract concessions made by transit workers will expire. They'd save the CTA tens of millions of dollars a year. Union leaders said Wednesday they would not extend that deadline.
Governor Blagojevich and legislative leaders are still negotiating over the telephone and behind closed doors. They say they hope the General Assembly could vote next week on a vast expansion of casino gambling that would include funds for mass transit.
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