IT'S ON- TWU STRIKES!!!!

Subject: Re: IT'S ON- TWU STRIKES!!!!

Carnivore wrote: We are all screwed.

*weep*

but yeah, my buddy from sheepshead bay (who works w/ me) is going to drive me in at 11 a.m. whoa.

horseycraze wrote: Is Roger Toussaint taking one last joyride on 1 train? There's no strike until he says so. I have a tax exam tomorrow, goddamnit.

die die die toussaint!

tax? I got an A in tax. I was terrified of my professor.

At 3:01am EST, the strike was announced by Toussaint. Apparently the TWU was waiting to finish all routes and drop off the remaining passengers. The least they could do I guess.

Hopefully the MTA will be force to get its act together here.

you mean making sure that I can retire at full pension at the age of 52? FUCK THE WORKERS. sorry. I really am pro-union but this union is retarded. I have no idea what kind of weird ass money tree (aka me, you, us) they think is funding this shit.

I believe both sides eventually agreed on 56 being the minimum pension age. The TWU had every right to defend the MTA trying to shift the pension back. 56 is the standard pension age--garbage men (sorry, department of sanitation workers) just renegotiated their contract with the city and were able to secure this provision. So why can't the TWU do the same?

Ultimately this is nothing more than a power struggle. Kalikow is a corrupt-ass motherfucker, and everyone knows it. He is inept as a financial officer and as an executive and then he pushed the union too far. Kalikow is good buddies with Bloomberg and Pataki, and that's they won't step in to assist the union (as they normally do with city agency workers in times of conflict). The MTA squanders money left and right and is mismanaged at the executive level. Remember that $500 bank account that turned up when they were audited two years ago? So if I were a TW, I'd be pretty pissed everytime the MTA says it doesn't have money to provide the same stability and basic comfort that other public workers enjoy. As discussed in a previous thread, the subway is disgusting. I can't think of one that doesn't smell of urine, vomit , and/or rat shit. I give mad respect to anyone who can work in those conditions.

If our public transport sucks, it's not because of the workers, it's because of the people who run it. Blame them instead.

Stop crying and get on your bicycles. There is no snow or ice on the streets and it's not predicted to rain or snow this week. Get on with it!

I'm mowing down anyone who steps in my bike lane.

pitu wrote: Come on it's just an inconvenience. Ride in the wake of Oiseau's bike!
Me, I *like* to be reminded that I can walk to midtown in 2 hours...

I'd rather they didn't strike, but I don't want the TWU to give up the rights of the future workers ("the unborn" in freaky union speak.) I RESPECT the TWU for making that a sticking point. I was in a union that had negotiated for current workers only and sold my ass down the river. After that contract (several years before I got there) we were all freelancers with no chance of a pension or health insurance paid by the company.

I'm also on the side of the union. Now granted, I am *very* fortunate to have a boss who has allowed me to work from home so I realize that the strike is currently less of an inconvenience for me than for millions of people. But having been in union, gone through the horrible horrible process of contract negotiations as representative for the union, having seriously talked about going on strike and what that would mean for us as workers, and in the end getting fucked over in our contract I sympathize. On the whole, I think transit workers don't have an easy job and are subject to a lot of abuse from riders. Listening to Ed Koch this morning on the news made my blood boil.

Woohoo! I'm sitting here in my living room in my pajamas with a cup of coffee, waiting for my boss to make it into the office (he lives within walking distance) and call me with instructions about what to do here at home for the day.

I'm gonna try to remain optimistic and just view this as a fun diversion, at least for the first couple of days. Then I'll probably have a meltdown.

Jack Krohn wrote: I agree with Alafairnadia. In this day and age, it's ridiculous to retire at 56 or 56 with a full pension and health coverage. I hope that the judge imposes the stiffest possible fines. 50K for a token booth clerk? I wish I could get paid that much to sit on my ass all day and watch a machine do 90% of my job.

Myth: You do not get a full pension at 55 with the MTA. It is a half-pension at 55 with a minimum of 25 years service. Token clerks don't make 50k. Get your facts straight. The MTA and Kalikow screwed up the pension system, not the union.

Sorry but the "pension" system does nt work, it is a giant pyramid scheme and is baseed on a company being able to gaurantee future earnings and growth. All realisitic companies are are phasing out pensions.

No doubt Kalikow is a complete useless ass and should be dragged behind the q train by a rope all day long.

Sorry, but some of the jobs the TWU pays out for are "easy" and many more are barely beyond GED capabilities, for jobs that other people ( legal immigrants ) would be happy to do for the pay and benefits the jobs offer.....sorry but its not rocket science.

I would like to make rediculous money with great benefits but I have had to hold off having children and work my ass off of less wages than I would have like along the way becasue I am realistic.

metulj wrote: [quote=Jack Krohn]I agree with Alafairnadia. In this day and age, it's ridiculous to retire at 56 or 56 with a full pension and health coverage. I hope that the judge imposes the stiffest possible fines. 50K for a token booth clerk? I wish I could get paid that much to sit on my ass all day and watch a machine do 90% of my job.

Myth: You do not get a full pension at 55 with the MTA. It is a half-pension at 55 with a minimum of 25 years service. Token clerks don't make 50k. Get your facts straight. The MTA and Kalikow screwed up the pension system, not the union.


"Pension" is a system that does not work with inflation, and even half pension is more that anyone I know is getting in the "middle class"

Captain M wrote: All realisitic companies are are phasing out pensions.

To appease shareholders, no doubt.

EmilyM wrote: In the past 24 hours I have come down with the flu. I was all ready to walk the 7.5 miles to my office but right now I feel like I couldn't walk 50 feet. I have no idea how I'm going to get home (via Penn Station) for Xmas tomorrow.

Not 100% sure about this, but I think LIRR has a shuttle to Penn Station running from Atlantic Terminal. Maybe that would work?

I really enjoyed walking to work today. Enough that I'm considering making it a habit. I wasn't very amused with Marty's cheerleading routine, however.

Captain M wrote: No doubt Kalikow is a complete useless ass and should be dragged behind the q train by a rope all day long.

I'm not sure if I'm up to that.

metulj wrote: [quote=Captain M]All realisitic companies are are phasing out pensions.

To appease shareholders, no doubt.
It amazes me how easily people align themselves with corporate interests, as if maximizing company profit at the expense of workers was an admirable thing.

Subject: Re: LIRR

carpenox wrote: you should be able to ride the LIRR from flatbush ave to penn station - that's one of the contingency plans our workplace told us about.

you can then get the path train from penn station to go to lower manhattan etc if you want to avoid walking.

You have to go through Jamaica.

metulj wrote: [quote=Captain M] All realisitic companies are are phasing out pensions.

To appease shareholders, no doubt.

This has nothing to do with shareholders, If a company has 500 employees and they all put in for a pension plan, with the cost of inflation , the "plan" is based on that company growing larger and the next generation of at least 500 employees putting into the pension "plan" which supplanyts payments to the current retirees. However any smart company needs to expect that in the future it may not have market share it currently has.

Social security is based on the same principle, look how great thats working out.

This is to say the the goverment is currently failing to provide many things it should which puts the burden on workers and companies, like health care.

Just heard on the news: The final sticking point for the TWU.... they want future employee's to put in 6% of thier salary to pension....they say they want to protect future generations...the real reason is they want to make sure they get paid in retirement....at 50 no less.