Hey, read that NYT article more carefully. The pension proposal saves 20 million over the next three years, but the pensions costs get exponentially higher as new workers are added, and until the number of new workers is higher than those under the old plan. The long term effect is in the hundreds of millions, and without addressing it now, we are in for much higher transit fares, and much worse service.

Bloomberg needs to find a way around the Taylor Law, so that he can fire these idiots as soon as possible, just like Reagan did with the air traffic controllers. This strike is illegal and is costing the City about $100 million every day, according to today's AP article. There's probably not even a way to count how much businesses are losing. The TWU is crying that the $1 million per day is too much; I say it's too little. Fine 'em out of business, then if they don't pay, do what the child support enforcement units do. Place liens against their bank accounts, intercept their tax returns, confiscate property, put people in jail.

It's not that I disagree with the TWU in theory. I think everyone should be able to retire at 55, to get guaranteed increases of 4% every year, etc. I also think housing is a human right, that everyone should be guaranteed an income, and that all children under 12 should have the opportunity to get free music lessons. That isn't the world we're living in. The TWU are spending too much time with their fellow union radicals and not enough time in the real world. Get a clue, Toussaint! It's not 1954 anymore.

S.D.,

You do realize that most Toyota and Honda plants stateside were non-union shops until recently. Honda's 16,000 Ohio employees were non-union as of 2004 and may still be. Are you less happy with your old car now that you've learned this? UAW has been pushing hard to unionize those plants even though there weren't any complaints from the workers. Honda and Toyota resist unionization because they know union-protected jobs mean lower productivity. Who cares about being efficient when you're going to get a raise no matter what and you can't be fired without going through convoluted union procedures? It's all about power. If UAW lets non-union plants continue to exist, then they call the necessity of their own existence into question.

rev pays,

You undermine your whole argument by taking it to absurd extremes. Windows isn't used to control equipment. Custom-written software is. Other, less hidebound cities have computer-controlled subways and yet we don't hear about mass mayhem underground. One reason we haven't progressed more quickly is, surprise, the TWU. Their mission is to protect the jobs of transit workers, no matter what, thus ensuring they have a full rank and file. That means opposing anything that might reduce jobs, such as automation.

Anyone have more info about the Command bus or other Brooklyn buses going to Manhattan?

two sets of books:

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ideas_opinions/v-pfriendly/story/78918p-72648c.html

how easily we forget...

I'd like to see Bloomberg shell out 7M to pay for some emergency buses or give out free bikes. He had no qualms about giving 7M to the "needy" Republicans in 2004.

Cindy, hopefully you aren't a freelance writer!

Unions do not protect or enrich workers. Unions protect and enrich union heads. Roger Toussaint is a power hungry and corrupt leader of a monopolistic labor organization.

If your skill set is unique you will have a job. If you perform your job at a level high level of service you will have a job.

At the peak in 1954 28.3% of all workers were unionized in 2003 that percentage has fallen to 11.5%. Where is the exploitation of labor? Where are the poor working conditions?

Fire all transit workers. Regan did it to the air traffic controllers in the '80s and we are better for it.

"when my non profit laid off %35 of our workforce this last year, all of us union folks were safe - we could keep paying our bills and taking care of our families, could keep getting our illnesses treated with our health plan--which we don't pay any direct contribution to."

That's exactly why unions are CANCER!

I want to rip the eyeballs from every transit worker, put a hot skewer inside all of the eye sockets and spit inside of them! FUCK THE TWU!!!!! NEW YORKERS SHOULD UNITE AND STRIKE AGAINST THE TWU! somebody find out who the fuck these people are and let's round up a angry mob to bash the fuck out of these DICKHEADS!!!

The TWU members can retire at age 55 with 25 years of service. How is this any different than cops putting in 20 years of service and retiring at age 40? Or, Sanitation workers and their 25 years of service rule?

Cops put themselves on the line for public saftey. Sanitation workers came to an agreement with the city that allowed the city to save millions by reducing new hires.

The transit workers, on the other hand,

* are consistently rude

* don't work as hard as other public employees

* have it much easier than people with their same skill-set (GED) in the private sector

I want them to start laying off workers today. Put their feet to the fire -- and start hiring scabs. This strike has to end.

yeah, let's get rid of unions. let's go back to the 70 hour work week as the norm. let's get rid of osha, too. let's go back to the good old days when all workers were totally at the mercy of their bosses and those lucky enough to have decent bosses maybe worked in somewaht safe conditions and only had to work 60 hours/week. Unions are not perfect and i would bet that every one of them has some really screwed up people at the top, but all in all, they do improve the lives of their workers over the long run. I cannot stand my union. they suck, BUT, when my non profit laid off %35 of our workforce this last year, all of us union folks were safe-- we could keep paying our bills and taking care of our families, could keep getting our illnesses treated with our health plan--which we don't pay any direct contribution to. No one who works in my company is wealthy--except for management, but thank god for our sucky union we all still have our jobs.

I hate the almost 2 hour walk to my office in the freezing cold. I hate that people who cannot afford it are haivng to pay extra to get to work. But I blame the MTA for that and I support TWU Local 100 and applaud them for not caving.

My friend was able to get a ride to Church Ave and Abermarle Rd in Brooklyn, get on a Command bus and there was this other bus running the BMX or something to the WTC Path, then the Path over to her job. A nice 2 hour commute to Jersey City!

The TWU members can retire at age 55 with 25 years of service. How is this any different than cops putting in 20 years of service and retiring at age 40? Or, Sanitation workers and their 25 years of service rule?

Automated trains? for NYC? I think not, unless you like to trust your trains to run on MS Windows.

The TWU members can retire at age 55 with 25 years of service. How is this any different than cops putting in 20 years of service and retiring at age 40? Or, Sanitation workers and their 25 years of service rule?

Automated trains? for NYC? I think not, unless you like to trust your trains to run on MS Windows.

The point of changing the MTA-NYCT pension plan for future employees is not to save money over the life of the current contract, but to start to fix structural financial problems in the budget. Although the initial savings will be limited, they will grow over time as more new employees are hired at the higher pension contribution rate. The fact the Times can't understand or explain this is symptomatic of reporters' general inability to explain complex situations.

Bloomberg should have been more involved from the beginning, instead of hiding out in his bunker.

The fact is, he did not want to get involved because he's scared of the political risk. It is clear that, in this instance, he cares more about his image than he does about the city.

I can't wait until all the trains become automated like other cities. It'll be a massively expensive task but that's a small fee to pay compared to what we are experiencing. Ultimately I hope it breaks the union as well.

Greedy? Odd, I don't remember typing "Greedy" into my Keyboard. You Confusing me with someone else?

;-)

Hmmm, Do you work in the I.T. Industry? Can't speak for other industries, but that one has Outsourcing up the Wazoo. Generally, I don't consider Corporations to be greedy per se, just task oriented to making money.

My point is: Honda and Toyota make profits despite dealing with Unions internationally. If they can do it, why is American Business falling on that old excuse? Honestly, it sounds more like propaganda and excuses more than anything else.

I Still think Unions are the lesser of two "evils".

Getting to work isn't so bad, it's getting home that's the problem. The plan for the morning works, but there's no plan at all for the evening.