Four to six thousand transit workers, angry about the MTA’s intransigence in Contract negotiations, staged a massive rally outside of 2 Broadway that spilled into the adjacent streets and shut down Broadway for periods from City Hall on down to the financial district.
TWU Local 100 members, joined by union brothers and sisters from a half dozen other TWU Locals as well as local labor leaders and politicians, heard TWU Local 100 President John Samuelsen call on the MTA to drop its “ridiculous” demands for three years of zero wage increases.
Referring to the chorus of praises showered on transit workers at the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Sandy, he said: “While most of the City was still in a state of confusion, we had the situation under control. The editorial writers called your effort ‘miraculous.’ It was miraculous. You are miraculous.”
But much of Samuelsen’s speech contained harsh words for MTA Chairman Tom Prendergast and Governor Cuomo, especially in light of new reports showing the MTA with an unexpected cash windfall of the $1.9 billion over the next four years. “Mr. Prendergast, Governor Cuomo, you are out of excuses,” blared Samuelsen to the cheering crowd of Local 100 members. “Our patience is wearing thin. It is time to get this contract behind us.”
More video and photos from the rally will be uploaded shortly.
