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SEPTA officers vote on proposed contract
SEPTA officers are voting on a proposed contract and, if the majority turn it down, SEPTA Transit officers will strike.
PHILADELPHIA - SEPTA Police have spent Wednesday voting on a new contract. Should the transit union reject SEPTA management's latest offer, they will strike immediately.
Voting began at 6 a.m. and is set to end at 6 p.m. A simple majority is required to either accept or reject the offer.
SEPTA Transit Police Union Vice President Troy Parham on Tuesday said he and union reps were still not satisfied with SEPTA's latest improved contract offer.
Negotiations have ended, and it’s now up to the police officers themselves to decide whether to accept or reject the offer and go on strike.
"We have made moves on both sides. They did make some movement. We don’t believe that they made enough movement for us," SEPTA Police Union V.P. Troy Parham stated. "The union has not endorsed this deal. We’re simply taking this deal to our members and letting them decide whether they want it and whatever decision they make, we’ll support that decision."
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Time is running out for SEPTA and its police union to avoid a strike
SEPTA Police are poised to go on strike Wednesday if a deal is not reached.
The 178 member police officers’ union has been working without a contract since March.
No deal, no strike: SEPTA Transit Police continue negotiations, possible strike on Thanksgiving
SEPTA Transit Police Union draw up new counterproposal to reach a new labor deal as a possible strike on Thanksgiving looms.
SEPTA says it realizes the vital importance of it's police force but is ready to carry on without the officers should they vote to strike.
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"This isn’t something we wanna do, but we have to maintain safety for our customers and employees, so what that entails lately is more reliance on our law enforcement partners. Philadelphia police, the university police departments, to help us with patrols around the systems and making sure we have coverage on the Market-Frankford Line and Broad Street Line. We would add more private security guards to the system," stated Andrew Busch, SEPTA Director for Media Relations.
19-year-old SEPTA security guard stabbed on-duty by knife-wielding man speaks out
A SEPTA security guard who was stabbed while on-duty by a 48-year-old knife-wielding man is speaking out.
The vote comes as questions regarding safety appear at an all-time high, following a stabbing at the 69th Street Transportation Center Tuesday, with SEPTA officers arresting a suspect within hours of the attack. Another stabbing happened at the Walnut-Locust station November 27, in which a SEPTA security guard was stabbed in the neck. The system has been plagued by violent acts for much of the year, with numerous shootings happening at various SEPTA stations.