Philadelphia transit workers union reaches 2-year deal with SEPTA to avoid strike
Philadelphia transit workers union reaches 2-year deal with SEPTA to avoid strike
Members of Philadelphia’s largest transit workers union reached a tentative contract agreement early Friday, averting a possible strike that threatened to bring elevated trains, buses and trolleys to a halt and leave thousands of children and educators without a way to get to school next week.
PHILADELPHIA - Transit Workers Union Local 234 on Friday said they have reached a tentative agreement with SEPTA on a new 2-year contract, avoiding a strike that would have brought the city's transportation services to a screeching halt.
"I am very pleased that we were able to come to terms without a strike," said TWU Local 234 President Willie Brown. "Our members are essential workers who move Philadelphia and who have risked their lives putting their own families at risk during this pandemic."
- SEPTA workers support vote that authorizes strike
- SEPTA releases guide in the event of a strike: Everything you need to know
- School District of Philadelphia braces for SEPTA strike
- Philadelphia City Council to hold hearings on SEPTA security procedures
The union said it asked for and received modest wage increases of 3% in each year of the new agreement and pandemic-related hazard bonuses of one dollar for each hour worked between March 15, 2020 and March 15, 2021, to a maximum of $2,200.
The union says workers will also retain top quality healthcare coverage with no increase in out-of-pocket payments for insurance payments or co-pays.
Union leadership had asked for a four-year contract with annual wage increases and a pandemic payment to compensate SEPTA workers that had served on the front lines of the pandemic, keeping public transportation moving for other essential workers. Nearly 800 members contracted COVID-19 and 11 TWU members died from COVID-19 or related complications, union leaders said.
Union members had noted that families of New York’s essential transit workers who died from COVID-19 received $500,000 in survivor benefit payouts, unlike families of transit workers in Philadelphia, who got no payout.
"SEPTA is facing unprecedented challenges. But our vice president Brian Pollitt did a magnificent job guiding the contract talks and getting us across the finish line," Brown said. "And, without question, the solidarity of our members was the key factor. The talks became far more productive after last Sunday’s unanimous strike vote."
The union represents about 5,000 bus drivers, cashiers, mechanics, and other workers providing service for buses, trolleys, the subway, and elevated train lines. The contract was set to expire at the start of November.
Local 234 said a ratification vote is now scheduled for next Friday.
Recent sex attacks, including a rape on a moving train, have prompted Philadelphia City Council to haul SEPTA leadership in for an upcoming hearing expected to be rough.
A spokesperson for SEPTA said the agency looks forward to the hearing so it can tell members about its challenges including people facing mental health challenges taking up residence in its train and subway stations.
SEPTA believes with $1.5 billion in federal pandemic support it can ride out the rough times until 2024 just in time to negotiate a possible new deal with TWU Local 234.
___
DOWNLOAD: FOX 29 NEWS APP | FOX 29 WEATHER AUTHORITY APP
SUBSCRIBE: Good Day Digest Newsletter | FOX 29 Philly on YouTube