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SEPTA's largest union continues talks for new contract
With 5,000 employees ready to walk off the job, SEPTA's largest union continues talks for a new contract. FOX 29's Steve Keeley has the latest.
PHILADELPHIA - SEPTA and its largest union are still trying to hammer out a deal to prevent more than 5,000 employees from walking off the job.
FOX 29's Steve Keeley has the latest on where talks stand as of Monday night.
SEPTA's buses and subway trains are still running tonight, and they will continue to run for tomorrow morning's Tuesday commute to schools and work for thousands of riders who rely on SEPTA.
Its workers say they're going to keep working as long as negotiators keep talking and keep inching progress along toward an agreement.
Tuesday will be the fourth day SEPTA drivers will be working without a contract, as talks go on after voting to authorize a strike.
They've put some of the reasons for it on their union hall's neon sign for all to see as they pass it on I-95 that says "Stalling on safety & security equals SEPTA strike."
This comes just one year since SEPTA bus driver Bernard Gribbin was shot and killed by a passenger who stepped off the bus, turned, and fired six shots killing the driver.
That was just three months after another rider fired into the windshield at another SEPTA bus driver after an argument over the fare.
SEPTA drivers aren't just asking for a raise but want SEPTA to raise the level of security for its 4,500 frontline workers facing an increasing firing line of abuse and violence.
Union sources say while SEPTA has made some movement on safety, there hasn't been movement on salary.
SEPTA says while they want to work with the union, it’s facing a significant financial crisis, with a budget deficit of a quarter billion dollars.
Negotiators will meet again Tuesday with parents of SEPTA's top customer base, the 55,000 school kids who rely on SEPTA to get to school each day, watching the negotiations too.
With just 16 days before the holiday season starts with Thanksgiving, no one involved says they want to have their holiday moods ruined by having to walk to schools and jobs or walk picket lines.