At TriMet Lift, contracted bus drivers say they want a union
It’s not every day workers get to
swarm their manager’s office to de-
mand union recognition. But that’s
what a group of TriMet Lift workers
did Oct. 3, accompanied by a state sen-
ator, the Oregon AFL-CIO president,
and the president of the union they
want to join.
The employer is First Transit — a
division of the giant UK-based multi-
national First Group. Under contracts
with TriMet, First Transit runs TriMet
Lift, a transit service for seniors and the
disabled, from three Portland-area lo-
cations. At two of the locations, work-
ers are represented by Amalgamated
Transit Union Local 757, but at the SE
92nd and Powell yard, they’re
Oregon ETA
honors Burns at
awards dinner
Vickie Burns,
executive direc-
tor of Labor’s
Community
Service Agency,
received a “Com-
mitment In Ac-
tion” award from
the Oregon Em-
ployment &
Training Associ-
V ICKIE B URNS
ation.
The annual award is presented to an
individual who, through service and
leadership, has demonstrated commit-
ment in action and excellence in the
field of workforce development.
As part of her job at Labor’s Com-
munity Service Agency, Burns, a
member of Office and Professional
Employees Local 11, is part of a rapid
response team that is called in to assist
employees who have been notified of
layoff.
The Oregon Employment & Train-
ing Association is a network of work-
force development professionals, busi-
nessmen and women, and supporters
from the workforce spectrum.
nonunion. Up to now, anyway.
Workers weren’t surprised when
First Transit operations manager Linda
Ciavara, caught off guard, wouldn’t say
whether the company will voluntarily
recognize their choice to unionize. So
the next morning, union supporters
filed a petition with the National Labor
Relations Board. The federal agency
has scheduled an election for Nov. 7 to
determine if workers really want a
union. [The fact that 112 of the 166
workers might have signed union au-
thorization cards isn’t enough to
demonstrate their choice to join a union
under U.S. labor law; the employer first
gets a chance to hire union avoidance
consultants and go at workers at
mandatory meetings.]
But on Oct. 3, at least, spirits were
high as workers felt the power of the
union. State Senator Laurie Monnes-
Anderson was there to lend moral sup-
port, as was Oregon AFL-CIO chief
Tom Chamberlain and Bruce Hansen
— a 20-year TriMet driver who became
Local 757 president earlier this year.
Hansen said unionizing the third
TriMet Lift unit is a top priority for Lo-
cal 757, and was something he cam-
paigned on.
Pay, benefits, and fair treatment are
among the reasons First Transit work-
ers cite for unionizing, as well as the se-
curity of knowing what the rules are —
and that they apply to everyone equally.
“The rules are there but you’re not
the nonunion workers lack.
Matt Leist — who’s worked at the
92nd Avenue yard for 18 years as a
driver, road supervisor, and trainer —
said the question of whether to union-
ize has come up again and again. What
made the difference this time, Leist
said, was support from the wider union
movement.
As part of an Oregon AFL-CIO pilot
project, affiliated unions pool re-
sources, and lend staff organizers when
a workplace unionizing campaign is
ready to snowball. In this case, full-
time union organizers paired up with
First Transit drivers and visited their
co-workers. In the course of a three-
week blitz, union support grew from
the initial 20-person committee to 112
workers having signed union cards.
“This is a career; it’s not just a driv-
ing job,” said driver Roni White. “Hav-
ing a union, and benefits, supports that.”
Paratransit drivers celebrate after making a demand for union recognition
with Amalgamated Transit Union Local 757. They’ll vote Nov. 7.
sure what they are,” said driver Mary
Williams, “and they’re implemented
one way for some people and another
way for other people.”
First Transit workers at TriMet Lift’s
two unionized locations have separate
collective bargaining agreements, but in
both cases, they out-earn their counter-
parts at the non-union location, the
union says. Hourly wages at the 92nd
Avenue yard top out at $18.75, com-
pared to over $21 at the two union
yards. The union workers also have hol-
iday bonuses, paid sick days, the right
to a representation during discipline,
and a grievance procedure, all of which
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