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Utano, Phillips, Crisp, Whichard Re-Elected to Top Four Union Positions

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DECEMBER 8 -- Local 100 members have re-elected President Tony Utano to a new three-year term, as well as incumbent running mates on the Stand United Slate, Earl Phillips as Secretary Treasurer, LaTonya Crisp as Recording Secretary and Lynwood Whichard as Administrative Vice President.

Six of the seven Vice Presidents on Utano’s slate, including John Chiarello (Maintenance of Way); Richard Davis (MaBSTOA); Shirley Martin (Car Equipment); Robert Kelley (Stations); Peter Rosconi (MTA Bus/School Bus/Private Operations), and JP Patafio (TAS) were all victorious. RTO members elected Canella Gomez as their Departmental Vice President from the Progressive Change slate.

President Utano said of the results: “I want to thank the membership for placing its faith in me to lead our union for the next three years. We all kept the faith throughout the pandemic, and together battled to keep our workplaces safe and to move the union forward on all fronts. We secured billions in federal aid for the MTA which will guarantee our jobs, our benefits and sanctity of our collective bargaining agreements for the foreseeable future. Better days are coming, and I am thrilled to be able to continue as President of this great organization, TWU.”

Unofficial results on all elections have been posted on the Elections Committee page. These results will be subject to certification.

Latest COVID Memo on Testing

Management has issued a memo on COVID-19 testing which explains testing procedures for members who choose not to get vaccinated. It also explains how to provide proof of vaccination. You can read it here.

We Celebrate Indian-American Heritage -- Photos from the Event

Five hundred transit workers hailing from India and Southeast Asia celebrated with Union leadership at a festive evening November 20th in Elmont. Officiating at the celebration were longtime CED officer Jolly Eapen and the younger members of the Committee. A great time was had by all -- the food was first rate, and Bollywood dancers and singers entertained the crowd. Enjoy the pix!

Tier 6 Refund Checks for Overcharged Members Are On the Way

Good news.

The MTA has started reimbursing Tier 6 members who were overcharged for their pensions. The checks are in the mail.

This first round of checks will be for overcharges that took place this year (2021). Reimbursements for overcharges that took place in prior years are expected to be issued in the first quarter of 2022.

TWU Local 100 President Tony Utano raised concerns earlier this year about the MTA’s pension-calculations, prompting the authority to do a comprehensive review. The review proved the concerns were on target.

Pensions are overseen by the New York State Legislature in Albany. The Tier 6 legislation mandated workers contribute 3% to 6% of their earnings through automatic paycheck deductions towards their future pensions. The legislation also limited, or capped, how much overtime could be used to calculate a retiring worker’s pension. The limit is now about $17,000 a year.

The MTA has conceded it had wrongly been making pension deductions to overtime earnings above the overtime cap.

The checks currently going out to overcharged members are for deductions on overtime earnings exceeding $17,000. The MTA will continue to deduct Tier 6 contributions for those employees on 40 hours only for the rest of the year. Deductions on OT earnings for those employees will not be subject to deduction for the remainder of 2021, and beyond.

The MTA has said that approximately 8,000 employees with the Tier 6 plan will be getting reimbursements with interest.

1010WINS Reports on How Local 100's Carriage Horse Drivers are Fighting the Mayor

Local 100 Shop Steward and Carriage Horse Driver Christina Hansen goes on 1010 WINS to support her Brothers and Sisters in Central Park and their iconic industry. Listen here.

Union Continues Campaign to Stress Severity of Worker Assaults

NOVEMBER 18 -- RTO Vice President Eric Loegel continued the Union's ongoing campaign to bring more public attention to the continuing issue of assaults on transit workers. With him was Conductor Trevor Thomas, who was shot in the face with a BB gun as he was pulling out of the 219th Street station on the #2 Train on November 8th. Brother Thomas described the pain and anger he felt after being shot by a gang of three teenagers. Union Rep Jose Melendez displayed Thomas's bloody shirt to assembled media. The assailants have not yet been apprehended.

TWU Local 100 in the Bronx in May on a safety campaign urging riders to tell the mayor to deploy cops to buses

Get cops on buses!

TWU Local 100 has been very vocal about the need for uniformed police officers to ride buses to help prevent the attacks and abuse inflicted on Bus Operators. It appears the MTA has come to the same conclusion. The MTA’s Sarah Meyer today told the authority board at its monthly meeting that 64% of subway riders feel safer when they see a uniformed police officer in the system – but that “the NYPD does not patrol buses. We need a plan on that front.” MTA Chairman Janno Lieber said, “Policing isn’t limited to the subway or the commuter rail system. People who ride buses also deserve effective policing. We’re looking at it right now.”

TWU Local 100 President Tony Utano issued the following comment in response to this development: “We are grateful that the MTA has finally publicly taken up our call for the police to pay much more attention to buses. This is good news for riders and Bus Operators. Bus Operators never see uniformed police officers on buses and have been subjected to violent assaults and horrendous abuse for far too long. The city has increased the number of police officers in the subway. It’s a good step but there’s more to be done throughout the subway and bus system. Transit workers come to work to do a job, not be punching bags for unhinged riders and criminals. We want to go home to our families at the end of our shifts safe and sound, not wind up in the emergency room.”

Police on a relatively very small scale “step on, step off” buses at very few bus stops but do not ride buses along routes.

Some previous coverage about Local 100 demanding police attention to buses. https://nypost.com/2021/05/13/scared-nyc-bus-drivers-demand-cops-in-their-vehicles/

https://www.amny.com/news/bus-operators-have-had-enough-of-the-spitting-violence-as-they-rally-in-harlem/

Carriage Horse Driver Christina Hansen -- a TWU Local 100 Member -- Talks Horses with WCBS88

Click on the image to hear Carriage Horse Driver Christina Hansen, who is represented by TWU Local 100, talking to WCBS 88 about how the horse carriage industry is now making a comeback as the COVID cloud begins to lift. Or click here for the report.

Conductor Trevor Thomas displays his injury from a BB gun shot

Witnesses in Attack on Conductor Sought

Police are looking for witnesses to help identify and apprehend a subway rider who shot a conductor in the face with a BB gun on the No. 2 line Monday night.

Conductor Trevor Thomas was observing the platform when he heard a the ‘pop’ of the BB gun and felt a stinging pain in his nose shortly after 9 p.m. at the 219th St. station in the Bronx. The shooter, who was a teenager wearing black clothing, ran from the station. Thomas, who was treated and released at the hospital, was assisted by union officers.

He still has to see a specialist to get the pellet removed from his nose, he said.

“This is a heinous attack on a transit worker which underscores the need for greater protections and stronger laws to keep our members safe,” RTO Vice President Eric Loegel said. “We’re all very lucky this conductor is doing OK, but it easily could have been worse. The union demands the assailant be brought to justice.”

Anyone with information on this attack should call CrimeStoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS

Infrastructure Bill Includes Worker Assault Protections

NOVEMBER 6 -- The massive infrastructure bill just passed by Congress isn’t just good news for mass transit riders and motorists – but also for transit workers enduring assaults and abuse on the job.

Transit agencies across the country will receive hundreds of millions of dollars combined for efforts to better protect transit workers, and the workers themselves will have a say in how that money is spent. Agencies like the Metropolitan Transportation Authority must establish a safety committee with an equal number of union and management representatives. The committee must adopt a plan with strategies to reduce the risk of assaults and submit the document to the Federal Transit Administration for approval – before getting infrastructure money from the feds. At least .75% of FTA funding an agency receives must be spent on worker-protection initiatives.

“This is a major victory for organized labor and for transit workers,” TWU International President John Samuelsen said. “We pushed hard on this issue and our efforts have borne fruit. There is a now a proper focus on mitigating the relentless scourge of worker assaults and abuse. Agencies will get additional funds for this and will have to listen to the workers when developing their plans. It’s a huge step forward.”

TWU Local 100 President Tony Utano praised the worker-safety provisions: “Transit workers come to work to do a job, not be punching bags for unhinged riders and criminals. We want to go home to our families at the end of our shifts safe and sound, not wind up in the emergency room.”