NYC Transit Strike Looms, page 1

New York City transit workers, who are part of the largest city transit system in the country, are threating to strike at the height of the busy christmas season, an action that is illegal in the state of New York.

www.breitbart.com
With a midnight deadline looming, the city transit agency and its bus and subway workers struggled to reach a new contract Thursday and avert a strike against the nation's biggest transit system at the height of the Christmas rush. As of midafternoon, the two sides remained far apart, and leaders of both groups expressed frustration as the prospect of New York's first transit strike in more than 25 years seemed to grow.

Transit workers are barred by state law from striking. The workers could lose two days' pay for every day on strike, and the city is seeking much larger damages against the union and its individual members.

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I'm looking at this from the standpoint of a federal air traffic controller. Controllers struck in 1981, an action that was against federal law. For those of you who dont remember, every striker was fired and replaced with mostly military personnell.

If they strike, they should be fired. There are many different ways to deal with contract problems other than threatening a job action, as the National Air Traffic Controllers Union (NATCA) is managing to do as we speak. Our union is in the middle of contract negotiations, and while it is not going in our favor, there will be no job action of any kind because it is against the law. Shutting down the city is not the answer, and should they choose to do so, they should be warned to return to work, and those who dont should be fired.

Let the lawyers take it to the state legislature and courts, but dont force the people of NY to suffer over it.

[edit on 16-12-2005 by snafu7700]

[edit on 18-12-2005 by asala]