Response to ATU / CTA contract proposal (12/17/2012) The union and the workers movement would be harmed by the

Tentative Agreement (TA) between Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) management and the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) officials. It further divides and weakens our unity and our union: workers will be doing the same work, unionized under the same union, yet getting dramatically different pay. This two-tier wage scheme is part of a conscious plan by the bosses to pit us against each other. Broad groups of new workers such as new bus drivers (working 12 months at 50% pay, greatly reduced benefits and harder working conditions), bus servicer apprentices (starting just above minimum wage), and lower-paid rail customer assistants, will be more susceptible to anti-union arguments when they are forced- not convinced to pay the same union dues as higher paid workers. If the current union officials think they have strengthened the union by temporarily increasing or holding-even their dues base, they have another thing coming. The history of the auto industry and the recent loss of union dues check-off legislation in Michigan is the direction this contract takes the union. Also, we shouldnt forget the history of the city and state governments nullifying contracts or writing laws that circumvent them. A contract is only as strong as the union that enforces it. This contract would put a bulls-eye mark on current workers heads (to be fired, laid off, etc.) when the employer can force newer workers to work under more difficult conditions for much less monetary cost to the bosses. (More experienced workers actually save a great deal of labor for society in many ways, including the safety of passengers). This tentative agreement encourages the employer to make work further onerous to us as they try to use newly implemented accelerated discipline measures to fire us or force us to quit or retire. The agreement incentivizes the employer to lay off current full-time workers and pressure those laid off workers to bump other workers out of their job while reverting back to a part-time position (which has nothing to do with part-time, it is simply a way to pay us less and work us harder and more dangerously). The TA encourages the employer to transform the workplace into a revolving hiring-firing shop where workers do not stay more than a year. This harms us, our loved ones and the riding public. Behind many of the arguments calling on us to ratify this contract proposal is a false pessimism towards the future, and a lack of confidence in working people. Also behind the arguments is a false belief that there are not enough resources to provide needed social services (health care, housing, public transportation, etc). This is not a budget problem but a question of social priorities. The main problem is that the people who do the work are not the ones who make the decisions. Working people, like us, have to begin to build the power to make these decisions in the interest of the great majority. With one weeks warning, we have been presented with an ultimatum: agree to the terms of this contract without revision or an arbitrator will dictate his will. It is

correct that arbitration is no better for us. Its a trap that further takes decisions out of workers hands. However, there are other options, such as going back into negotiations with a broader negotiating team of rank-and-file workers. However, negotiations no matter how democratic or competently handled cannot improve the relationship of forces between the workers and the employer. To do that, we have to transform our unions and other working class organizations so that they are battle ready: in our case, constantly preparing to stop the buses and trains (or other job actions) if necessary. Without this credible threat to the boss, we have no leverage and no respect. The bosses plans for the future (without us) will continue unchecked. That harms everyone. ATU local 241 and 308 members should reject the latest CTA contract proposal and turn our efforts towards mobilizing ourselves and our communities to fight for better working and living conditions. Rather than harming the new workers and future generations, we should welcome them as equals and embark on an organizing campaign to build our confidence, consciousness and unity. -erek slater Chicago public transit bus driver Member, Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 241