Mayor Bloomberg and Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott warned today that the city is facing “strong possibility” of a school bus strike next week, one which Bloomberg says would result in "chaos." Local 1181 of the Amalgamated Transit Union is threatening to strike over the city's plan to ask for bids for service to transport special education pre-kindergarten children for next school year. “So the union is threatening an illegal strike that would harm the education of more than 152,000 students if it doesn’t get its way. And that’s just outrageous,” Bloomberg said at City Hall earlier. more ›

After 44 long days, the strike at the Central Park Boathouse is over. And it only took a week more than previously expected. It seems that deputy mayor for economic development Robert Steel took time away from his Connecticut mansion to help work out a deal between Boathouse operator Dean Poll and New York Hotel Trades Council. “I want to congratulate Dean Poll and the New York Hotel Trades Council for reconciling their differences andcoming to an agreement that is good news for the Boathouse, its employees and the City," Steel said, announcing the resolution. The terms of the deal have not yet been disclosed but since the restaurant will now be a Union shop it doesn't sound like Poll really won. more ›

The 65 Central Park Boathouse employees who walked off the job on August 9 in protest against the restaurant's labor practices are getting some heavy-hitting support from the federal National Labor Relations Board, which oversees union matters. more ›

Amid reports of violence on the picket lines, the Communications Workers of America and the IBEW announced that their Verizon workers will return to their jobs on Tuesday, ending a two-week strike that was the country's longest in four years. "We have reached agreement with Verizon on how bargaining will proceed and how it will be restructured," the CWA statement reads, "The major issues remain to be discussed, but overall, issues now are focused and narrowed." more ›

45,000 Verizon landline workers have been on strike since Sunday, in the largest strike America's seen in years. The unions and Big Red are locked in a bitter battle over proposed cuts to union benefits, which executives claim are necessary because of the bad economy and the company's less lucrative landline division. Unions, of course, scoff at that premise—pointing to the executives' high salaries and the landline division's profit increases—and are digging in for a long fight. In this video, you can see they mean business (warning: the worker's salty talk maybe NSFW): more ›

The unionized staff at the Village Voice won't be striking, after all. Earlier this week, we reported that staffers were poised to strike over a contract dispute, with employee health benefits being one of the largest issues. Today there's word from both sides that an agreement has almost been reached. more ›

Union staff members at The Village Voice are ready and prepared to strike as their contract nears its deadline on June 30th. Today, staffers announced an alternative site, The Real Voice, where they plan to continue writing without management from Village Voice Media. We spoke to a Voice staffer and strike organizer about the situation. more ›

The Stella D'Oro baked goods factory in the Bronx has been closed for over a year and a half ever since negotiations with its workers broke down and turned into a bitter strike. According to Mike Filippou, who was Stella D'Oro's lead mechanic, at least 100 of the 135 people who lost their jobs in June 2009 are still out of work. But the workers will get a chance to play themselves in an upcoming HBO documentary about the strike. more ›

To support fellow longshoremen on strike in Camden, NJ, port workers in Elizabeth, Newark and Bayonne in N.J. and in Staten Island and Brooklyn refused to cross picket lines. The Daily News reports, "The work stoppage froze all cargo coming in and out of facilities operated by the Port of New York and New Jersey. The International Longshoremen's Association said the job action was not sanctioned and that union members were acting on their own." A federal judge also ordered the longshoremen men back to work, but they are still on strike. The strike by the Camden workers is over work being moved to a non-union facility in Gloucester, NJ. more ›

Shouldn't the cast of Jersey Shore just be happy enough with the fact that they are making a living off fist pumping and posturing for cameras? Snooki & Co. will be back on the small screen with season 2 at the end of the month, but now TMZ reports that they've gone on strike just as they're set to film spots for season 3 (yes, season 3). more ›

After a pilots' strike over wages forced Spirit Airlines to cancel flights since last Saturday, the airline has reached a deal with the pilots and says flights will begin again tomorrow. However, the strike won't be over until the pilots sign a back-to-work agreement; Sean Creed, a Spirit captain and union rep, told the AP, "I think our people will be more than willing to assist the company in getting itself back together and fully operational as soon as we possibly can." more ›

There are still no talks scheduled between over 400 striking pilots and Spirit Airlines, which has forced the airline to cancel all flights through tomorrow Wednesday. Their website reads, "Spirit Airlines is continuing to work with our pilot union to reach a fair and equitable agreement that ensures the long-term stability of the company, and allows us to continue offering you the ultra low fares you have come to know and love," and offers flight credit to those who intended to fly on those dates. But refunds aren't getting travelers where they need to be. more ›

Notoriously stingy Spirit Airlines has been forced to cancel all of today's flights as the pilot strike continues into its second day. Pilots claim they have been working in poor conditions and want to be paid as much as their counterparts at JetBlue and Airtran. A union spokesman says they "will not return to the cockpit until a fair and equitable contract is negotiated." Spirit Airlines says there are no plans for new negotiations, and have been busy attempting to refund travelers' tickets and get them onto other fights. It's not going so smoothly. more ›

One week after building workers at Co-op city went on strike over alleged proposed wage freezes, the RiverBay Corp. has officially ended its lockout of the workers. Local 32BJ president Kyle Bragg said in a press release, "I am pleased to announce that RiverBay has accepted the union’s offer to return to work and resume contract negotiations. We hope that we can reach a fair agreement that is good for workers and Co-op City residents." more ›

Residents of Co-op City in the Bronx were thankful that the Department of Health ordered the Department of Sanitation to remove trash that had been piling up during the building workers strike. The sanitation department will not cross the picket lines unless ordered to by the health department, but residents were glad they did. Kevin Pierre, 32, told the Post. "I'm ecstatic. The raccoons were eating the garbage." The complex produces 40 tons of trash per day, but another resident said, "I've lived here all my life, and this is the worst I've ever seen it." more ›

Probably to the relief of Co-Op City residents, the Department of Health ordered the Department of Sanitation to remove tons of trash from the Bronx housing complex. Building workers have been on strike since Tuesday, claiming that RiverBay management wants to freeze their wages and walked away from negotiations, while RiverBay says that Local 32BJ was the one to walk away. more ›

The Co-Op City building workers strike continues, and residents are continuing to voice their concerns over the huge piles of garbage that could attract unwanted furry creatures. CBS 2 visited the scene, deeming it a "stinky mess" since the huge Bronx housing complex creates about, oh, 40 tons of garbage a day. more ›

Over 500 workers went on strike yesterday at Co-op City in the Bronx, and residents are starting to feel the pain. The workers were locked out of the complex by management once they learned of the strike, and now broken lights are going unfixed and the garbage is piling up. Tenant Leroy Dow told the Post, "The garbage is loose, which is a huge problem because there are a lot of raccoons around, especially at night. When it rains, the garbage will smell and attract rats." Could the complex be headed for a ratdemic? more ›

It's the Doorman Strike that never happened! Over 500 porters, garbage attendants and maintenance workers formed picket lines at the Co-op City housing development in the Bronx at about 8 a.m., protesting a proposed four-year wage freeze. The Local 32BJ contract—a different contract than the one which nearly caused a building worker strike in April—with the RiverBay Corp. expired this morning, and negotiations reportedly broke down last week. 32BJ Vice President Kyle Bragg said in a press release, "RiverBay's refusal to put realistic wage proposals on the table left us no other option than a strike. Wage freezes are unacceptable." more ›

After reaching a deal just minutes after the contract deadline, members of the Local 32 BJ union are thankful they didn't have to strike. "I'm happy the deal was reached. I'm very happy because no one wants to go on strike during these economic times," one doorman told the Post. The deal includes 10% wage increases over four years and and agreements to continue discussions on lowering health care costs. more ›

Bad news for anyone hoping to ride out the pending Local 32 BJ strike by just ordering out more than usual: the grocery delivery service Fresh Direct will refuse to enter buildings whose doormen are on strike. The unionized drivers of Local 348S want to show solidarity with building workers, and will make anyone who orders groceries to those buildings meet them on the street and carry the boxes themselves. Union leader Eduardo Cordero told the Times, “We will not be putting our members in any kind of danger or any situation that would provoke trouble... At the same time, the company still has to provide a service." more ›

The 32 BJ building workers union and the Realty Advisory Board have been in accelerated contract negotiations since Thursday, but they are reportedly still "far apart" on ideas for the new contract. The current contract expires on April 21st, and if the two sides don't settle on things like wages, health care and sick days, more than 30,000 building workers across the city will strike. Howard Rothschild of the RAB told Businessweek they are "committed to negotiating continually—around the clock, if necessary—to reach an agreement before midnight Tuesday." more ›

After Monday's march down Park Avenue yielded no deals, the city's building workers are coming even closer to striking. The deadline for a new contract deal between the Realty Advisory Board and 32BJ is April 21st, and a strike of 30,000 workers would affect every borough except the Bronx. 32BJ Executive Vice President Kevin Doyle told NY1, "Unfortunately there's going to be an incredible disruption to the daily lives of the people of New York City. We want to avoid that but it unquestionably would be a disruption." more ›

High-rise residents might want to watch out for the threatened doorman strike, or maybe just be a little nicer to the guys carrying their groceries, because doormen are on the Internet! New York Magazine has a whole feature today on building workers who decide not to keep their resident's indiscretions a secret. more ›

Thousands of unionized doormen and other apartment workers voted last night to authorize a strike later in the month, potentially leaving New Yorkers everywhere (or just on the Upper East Side) to sign for their own packages, pick up their own laundry and find other building workers to fall in love with. Though doormen in Brooklyn and Queens approved the measure earlier this week, workers in Manhattan approved the measure last night, authorizing a strike if negotiations can't create a new four-year contract by 12:01 a.m. on April 21. Union 32 BJ president Mike Fishman said in a press release, "Today’s strike vote shows we’re determined to keep our city a place that working families can afford to call home." The biggest issues are wages, health benefits, sick days and overtime, according to 1010Wins. more ›

Yesterday disgruntled transit workers took to the streets, protesting layoffs and other budget-cutting measures by slowing morning rush hour at a bus depot in Queens. Or at least that's what the News says. Before sunrise, union inspectors found “equipment defects” on 64 buses as they headed out for their morning trips, then held them for more than an hour. The bus back-up led to the cancellation of 16 more bus runs, MTA officials said, meaning that a third of the College Point depot’s vehicles were affected. Protest delays like this one are illegal, reports the tabloid, but can be hard to prove. more ›

[UPDATE BELOW] The local chapter of the union that represents nearly 3,000 of the NBC's producers, writers and technicians is threatening to walk out during the network's "Christmas in Rockefeller Center" special tonight—potentially denying millions of viewers the pleasure of seeing a light switch get flicked. The show is supposed to be broadcast tonight starting at 8 p.m., hosted by Jane Krakowski (30 Rock) and Zachary Levi (Chuck). Musical guests include Aretha Franklin, Rod Stewart, Rob Thomas, Alicia Keys, Jo Dee Messina, Barry Manilow, Shakira, The Muppets, and The Roots. more ›

Is another transit strike looming on the horizon? Yesterday over 350 furious transit workers took to the streets outside MTA headquarters in protest, some carrying signs like the one seen here. The employees are outraged over an ongoing contract dispute with the MTA board, whose decisions are heavily influenced by the Mayor. The MTA is refusing to accept a plan to raise the hourly pay rate by more than 11 percent over three years; the deal was reached through arbitration in August, but now the MTA is asking a judge to toss it out, claiming that the panel "made legal and factual mistakes." The raises would cost the MTA 350 million dollars. more ›

The union that organizes restaurant workers at Tavern on the Green is spoiling for a fight with the new leaseholder, who's trying to renegotiate the union's contract. The new operator, Dean Poll, was awarded the license by the Parks Department last month, but he's under no obligation to honor the previous labor contract. So he wants the workers to agree to a pay cut, agree to no advance notice for layoffs or reduction in hours, and a change to the banquet staff to a vague new hourly rate, without tips. They're currently paid $5.26 an hour with tips. more ›