The contract talks between the NYPD's captains' union and the city have hit the brakes. The union has been working without a contract for 40 months, and now the matter will have to go to the Public Employment Relations Board for binding arbitration. This comes as the starting salary of police recruits are under increasing scrutiny. The NY Times has an editorial, calling the $25,100 "a pauper's sum" and pointing out it's no surprise that the NYPD recruited just over 40% of its goal. more ›

It's been three months since the transit strike and still the MTA and Transit Workers Union Local 100 don't have a new contract. So nobody should be too surprised that the New York State Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) decided today that the two have to go into binding arbitration where "a three-member panel will essentially dictate the terms of a new contract." more ›

The MTA rained on Transport Worker Union Roger Toussaint's plan to have the union revote on its contract by saying the matter should go to arbitration. The union claims that MTA Chairman Peter Kalikow was interested in revisiting the original contract, drawn up last December after the strike, but now it seems that the MTA wants to "punish" the strikers. And Kalikow is upset that the Public Employment Relations Board didn't immediately throw the negotiations to arbitration after the union rejected the contract. Maybe the PERB feels that rejection by 7 votes out of tens of thousands should be arbitrated! At any rate, Toussaint's naysayers are having a ball with this - things should get interesting when there's a new vote for TWU executive management. more ›

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