SEPTA's largest union to hold strike-authorization vote

SEPTA bus drivers, subway and trolley operators, and other transit workers will vote Sunday afternoon on authorizing a strike this year or early next year.

No strike appears imminent, said officials for the union and the transit authority.

Transport Workers Union Local 234 is the largest of SEPTA's 17 unions, representing about 5,000 drivers, operators, mechanics, cashiers, and other workers.

They have been working without a contract since the previous five-year pacts expired in March and April, and union president Willie Brown has said a strike is all but certain.

He has not said when workers might walk out if the members authorize a strike. He has scheduled a news conference for Monday to discuss the state of negotiations with SEPTA.

"We will keep working at the bargaining table," Brown said Friday. "But it is not fair to our members or our passengers for SEPTA workers to remain on the job indefinitely under an expired contract."

"The parties continue to meet in negotiations to reach an agreement," SEPTA spokeswoman Jerri Williams said Friday. "We have been given no indication that a work stoppage is imminent. A Service Interruption Plan will be released if and when the situation changes."

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