State Rep. Calls For Binding Arbitration to Resolve SEPTA Contract
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State Rep. Calls For Binding Arbitration to Resolve SEPTA Contract
Catherine Lucey
We just got this release from state Rep. Brendan Boyle:
Boyle introducing resolution calling for binding arbitration in SEPTA strike
PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 6 -- State Rep. Brendan F. Boyle, D-Phila./Montgomery is introducing a House resolution calling on both sides in the ongoing SEPTA strike to agree to binding arbitration to resolve the impasse.
“After eight months without a contract, and four days of a strike with no end in sight, it is clear that binding arbitration is needed,” said Boyle. “In this specific context, binding arbitration is a reasonable way to obtain a contract that treats both parties fairly and gets SEPTA back up and running.”
Boyle added, “Currently, with no resolution to this impasse, all sides are losing and will continue to suffer. SEPTA riders have no way to get to work, which hurts them and the local economy of the Philadelphia region. SEPTA workers are out of work and going without pay. Those who drive and don’t use SEPTA are also losing because they are now forced to endure crippling traffic, with the dramatic increase of vehicles on the street.”
Boyle's resolution will be introduced in the House on Monday, and the lawmaker said members could vote on it early in the week.
More than 5,000 members of the Transport Workers Union Local 234 began striking on Nov. 3 after leaders rejected a contract proposal from SEPTA for the next several years. The union has worked without a contract for eight months.
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Mayor Nutter, get a injunction so SEPTA can roll the buses again.— Julius May- Start firing and at will hiring now! Those jobs will be snapped up in a minute.— cw613
- Instead of going to arbitration and having someone dictate the fate of SEPTA and it's union, SEPTA should cut it's ties with the union that is crippling the city. Since a great number of people are out of work that want to work, SEPTA should let it's union worker go and hiring some of those qualified individuals that want and need jobs with benefits and that will come in at the current rate. The NFL once had Replacement Players, SEPTA can now have Replacement Operators.— The Detective
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- Fire them. There are so many hard-working citizens that will be happy to work and greet their customers with a smile. We need a referendum on the next ballot to not allow transit workers to strike. They are a disgrace to this city and their families. No arbitration. Fire them or get an injunction that forces them back to work.— tomc
- please why dont you all get out there and drive a bus......and than tell me if they deserve the salary, ugh...— center city
Managing Director is on Vacation! She hardly works when she is here, and the school marm thing is wearing off. Corey Kemp was caught no performing good services. She is either a thief or should be laid off immediately.- Comment removed.
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- center city - why dont you drick a tractor trailer 12 hours across 5 states and tell me why does SEPTA bus drivers deserve their salaries compared to truck drivers who are mostly self-eployed. Bus drivers have it easy compared to for-profit drivers of other forms of transportation.— MMillercold421
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David Gambacorta spent a small eternity writing about cops, drug dealers and serial killers. Now he’s writing about power and politics – which sometimes reminds him of the old crime beat. He joined the Daily News in 2005. And yes, he knows you’re not quite sure how to pronounce his last name. E-mail tips to gambacd@phillynews.com
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Jan Ransom, a native New Yorker, joined the Daily News in 2010 after graduating from Howard University. She has since written about the difficulty of filing police complaints, tax deadbeats and life after violent home invasions. She joined the Daily News City Hall Bureau in 2011 and has plunged headfirst into reporting on administration budget battles and City Council shenanigans. E-mail tips to ransomj@phillynews.com
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Sean Collins Walsh is from Bucks County and went to Northwestern University. He joined the Daily News copy desk in 2012 and now covers the Nutter administration. Before that, he interned at papers including The New York Times, The Dallas Morning News and The Seattle Times. E-mail tips to walshSE@phillynews.com
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