THe one thing here is that the laborers in NYC Transit that could be seen as skilled are the drivers and engineers. everyone else is probably expendable on some level. i like the place clean and all, but hey. give them their small raise, but fine them all.

i hear ya brian. i'm tired of this dancing around at the deadlines. whether its right or wrong to strike, its is CERTAINLY unfair that they dangle the possibilities around.

they should stop being pussies and announce something already.

I really don't want to go through this all night again because the fucking union is made up of morons. If you're going to strike, declare it now so we can go to bed and get ready for our respective journeys tomorrow. If you're not going to strike, let us know so we don't have to keep it glued to NY1 and that fat fuck that sounds like he just walked out of a Brooklyn gang and into the NY1 newsroom.

WNBC reporting that the MTA agreed to leave the pension age at 55 for new hires (in exchange for a higher worker contribution for the first ten years) and the union rejected that. It seems that there is progress being made in the negotiations -- why don't the two parties agree to "cool off" for few weeks and then come back in Jan to try again? This isn't like a single airline or supermarket going on strike, where people have other options. A strike is going to be crippling.

Yes what amazing skills of deduction, Boots. Of course I am referring to the absolute jam of cars the streets are going to turn into. Ambulances, fire trucks, police cars will be stuck in traffic for 30, 40, 50 minutes just trying to reach their destinations. Cars can't yield when they have NOWHERE to go.

just want to find the final result soon...and not like at 7am like last week...lack of sleep trying to figure out what's going on and get a good night's rest to deal with whatever happens tomorrow

i'm excited about this. its like the blackout all over again, but with me freezing my balls off.

i just hope this doesn't go beyond one day, two tops. its novel and fun for the first day, when i can't go to school and i get to sleep in. but after that, i realize i need to get shit done, that i've got places to go.

i say this: 7% raise for every year for the next 3 years. The retirement age stays at 55 and everyone (old and new workers) must pay out 1% of their paycheck to their pension and insurance.

I think he meant the traffic would be thick as a result of the lack of alternative transportation, hindering emergency vehicles stuck wading through it slowly.

of course i.m being selfish, but they can.t strike for the same reason fire fighters can.t strike...if my house is burning down and I want it put out, that.s "selfish" too.

I just want to point to Steve Gilliard's excellent analysis of the strike situation. It's the clearest such that I have seen yet.

http://stevegilliard.blogspot.com/2005/12/live-blogging-strike-deadline.html

People are going to die because emergency vehicles will not be able reach their destinations.

Yeah, right. Lots of EMTs ride the subway.

hmmm...don't know ALL THE ANGLES here, but it seems like maybe you are taking a somewhat selfish outlook towards the whole transportation strike and labor situation, mark.

From the union website: Dec. 19 - TWU Local 100 Executive Board voted on Friday, Dec. 16 to go out on strike against the MTA on Tuesday, Dec. 20, at 12:01 a.m.

http://twulocal100.org/?q=node/549

Rosa Parks won't be able to ride the bus tomorrow. =(

GOD, FUCK THEM! This fucks up my work, my school, getting to see my Girlfriend and exchange gifts [read: have christmas] before she leaves town for family affairs...FUCK THESE BASTARDS. I.m not just going to be out at the picket lines tomorrow with rotten eggs and tomatoes, but with a goddamm baseball bat. Fuck these...Jesus, fuck, just fuck.

Face it, they're striking. Get out your walking shoes and your mufflers.

If they do strike, I can't imagine it will be for more than 1 or 2 days. $25,000 fines doubling each day is going to be a lot for the workers to pocket, and $1,000,000 is going to lay heavily on the union. The strike is completely out of line, plenty of union members have worked temporarily off contract until it can be settled, especially union members who keep an 8 million person city functioning. People are going to die because emergency vehicles will not be able reach their destinations. They are only screwing over the working class who won't be able to afford cabs to work and lose wages/get fired. Toussaint is such a damn fool. I look forward to a class-action against the TWU for lost productivity. Save your taxi receipts folks. Bah.

I still don't think they'll strike.

Those fines might be a little too hefty for them.

While I have to admit this has been kind of exciting, it's starting to sink in that a strike is really going to suck.

Dear Santa,

No matter how this contract negotiation ends up, I just have one request from you: can you please adjust the length of any contract to add .5 to the end of the normal contract.

For instance, if you were going to give the union a 2-year contract, how about making it 2.5 years; 3-year contract, 3.5 years; and, so on.

It'd be nice to throw the obligatory pomp and circumstance surrounding contract negotations to the summer (read: warmer) months.

Thanks, Santa.

Love,

The riders of New York's buses and subways.