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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 7, 1983)
Striker's death may sway bus union vote Local workers meet today to discuss proposal Emerald photo Greyhound picketers will soon vote on a proposed strike-ending contract. By Michele Matassa Of (Hr Emerald Striking Greyhound workers will meet in Eugene today with a Portland union representative to discuss a contract pro posal approved Saturday by company and union negotiators. Meanwhile, the bus company will con tinue limited service throughout Oregon and the nation. Ed Perkins, assistant business agent for Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1055, will explain the proposed contract today to local strikers, who are voting by mail along with union workers across the nation. Ballots should be counted Dec. 19, Perkins said. The union is recommending passage of the contract, Perkins said, but he declined to guess how the membership would vote. "We thought we had a pretty good shot on it but since they killed one of our pickets yesterday, we don't know what the view will be," he said. A striking worker in Ohio was run over and killed Monday when a group of picketers converged on a bus being used to train replacement drivers. "No one likes to see someone die, especially if he's run over by a scab. We re still hopeful that the membership will ac cept the package and we'll lick our wounds and be back in three years," Perkins said. He said 31 agents of the Amalgamated Council worked with company negotiators to "hammer out the contract," which in cludes a 7.8 percent pay cut according to sources cited in wire service reports. Roy Walters, a 17-year veteran of the Greyhound company who is now on strike, said "the contract will be ratified by very few percentage points." "Personally, I feel that, once again, the company is dividing one (union) member against another member,” Walters said. For instance, younger workers usually are more able to find other work than older workers, so they would be more likely to refuse the offer, he said. "I am 51 years of age and I can't possibly retire for four more years. I need a contract to work by. I may possibly accept more takeaways than someone who is 10 years younger than I am," Walters said. The accident in Ohio may cause some union members to change their votes, he said, even though the death wasn't the fault of the driver trainee. "I would much rather blame Greyhound itself for not suspending training opera tions last Saturday," when the new contract proposal was approved, Walters said. Despite the accident, company officials in Pheonix "are optimistic that it will be ratified," according to company represen tative Leslie White. "I don't think anybody can really believe in their heart that we deliberately ran over a striker," White said. A grand jury will hold a hearing on the issue Monday. In Oregon, service is still limited but may pick up shortly before Christmas, said Louie Thomas, assistant terminal manager in Eugene. "Greyhound, of course, is continuing ahead to provide full service regardless if the contract is ratified or not," Thomas said. Half-price fare will continue through Dec. 15 and the company will not resume service south of Eugene until possibly "just prior to Christmas," he said. 1 Other ways of getting there With Christmas break just around the corner and with many Greyhound buses still locked in their stalls, students may be wondering if they'll be able to get home for the holidays. Officials say the racing dog probably won't be at full capacity by the end of finals week, so students traveling south of Eugene and those refusing to ride Greyhound need to find alternative means. •The ASUO runs a "Rideboard," where students can post cards -.vith rides offered and wanted on a bulletin board in the EMU basement. Many students already use this option, which is best for those traveling longer distances, says ASUO receptionist Oz Adams. Students offering rides should post cards on the board, which is divided into numbered regions. Destination, date leaving, name and phone number should be included on the card. •The city's Switchboard also offers a method of matching up ride offers with ride requests. The service is free to Lane Community College and University students, who can register at the office, 556 Pearl Street, by showing their cur rent identification and fee card, says director Marie Fink. Once students register, they must re-register each term, Fink says. The Switchboard provides taped infor mation about available rides, which is updated each day as 5 p.m. The phone number is 345-7600. To call the office and register for membership, dial 342-HELP. •Trailways Bus System currently is of fering reduced fares to locations in California (south of Sacramento), Washington, Idaho and Utah. A 12 per cent discount card for students also is available. For more information, call 342-5331. •Amtrak also presents an affordable option. Round trip fare to Portland is $27, while round trip travel to Seattle is $57. Students going to San Francisco will be charged $125 round trip and those heading for Los Angeles will have to pay $154 round trip. For more information or to make reservations, call 485-1092. Black Student Union gearing up BSU Pres. Wendi Hughes says the campaign of presidential can didate Jesse Jackson will help keep her organization busy this year. By John Heldt Of the Emerald Many black Americans view the adoption of a Martin Luther King national holiday and Jesse Jackson's presidential candidacy as a revival of lost hopes, and one ASUO group is determined to keep that revival going. That organization is the Black Student Union, a group that is "alive, supportive and ready to take on the challenges facing black students today," says BSU Pres. Wendi Hughes. The BSU has plans to reawaken support for black issues and to maintain its successful role as a resource center for the more than 200 black students at the University. Hughes says the BSU tradi tionally has been a place that black students, especially freshmen, have turned to when they need information, tutoring, or personal contact with other blacks. The group intends to increase its activity this year, she says. The organization's growth and added work load have been tempered by recent budget cuts. The BSU has 9 percent less fun ding this year than it did in 1982-83. Despite this shortfall, Hughes says she remains optimistic. "In recent years, our programs have been successful,"she says. The group, comprised of about 15 members, most of whom are volunteers, has made its biggest impact on students by simply "pointing them in the right direc tion" through its referral services, she says. However, she says it has been BSU's special events that have received the most recognition on campus. These events have included Black History Month (February), the Black Arts Festival, dances, and annual commemorations of King's birthday, an event Hughes says should take on greater significance in the coming years. • This spring the BSU plans to join with several other ASUO organiza tions in raising funds for Jackson's campaign, in addition to urging more blacks to register and vote. "The simple fact that a black is running for president will bring more black students to the polls," Hughes says. Recruiting also will be a priority this year — and for good reason. Despite the BSU's relative success in reaching students, Hughes believes there is plenty of room for improvement. "Not all black students know that the BSU exists," Hughes says. "If they don't know we exist, they won't come into the office and we can't help them." Another arm of the recruiting movement is reaching for black students in Oregon high schools as part of an effort to bring them to the University and inform them about the BSU. Next spring, the BSU plans to mail to various high schools information about Black Student Recruiting Day. In addition to the support the BSU has given to students, it has also provided assistance to in dividuals outside the University. Earlier this fall, the group was contacted by an Oregon family suffering from racial harassment who wanted to relocate to a more favorable "racial climate" in the Eugene-Springfield area, Hughes says. The BSU referred the family to the Council of Minority Education and that resulted in their eventual move to this area. Occurences such as these con vince Hughes the BSU's existence is not only necessary, but vital to those who depend on its services. Anyone interested in learning more about the group should call Hughes at 686-4379. Five named to business honor group Five students were initiated into the Beta Gamma Sigma business honor society this month, accor ding to president Pat Reichert. Catherine Ednie, accounting, Susan Goldfield, marketing and Brenda Hammer, finance, are master's candidate initiated into the society. Tong Tech Lee, marketing and Arleen Rice, finance, are senior initiates. Only students who rank in the upper 5 percent of the junior class, the top 10 percent of the senior class or the top 20 percent of the master's program were in vited to join the society, Reichert says. The president of U.S. Steel, Inc. supports the society. Initiates must have at least a 3.5 GPA, must have taken a limited amount of pass/no pass hours and must be reviewed by a faculty screening committee. Beta Gamma Sigma is a scholastic honor society, not a ser vice group, Reichert says. Some members will become active in the national organization after they are established in their careers. The president of U.S. Steel, Inc. is supporting and encouraging the society to keep active, Reichert says. "It is really quite an honor," Reichert says. Beta Gamma Sigma is the only nationally recognized honor society for business students, she says. Section A, Page 3
