All News

COVID-19 Testing Program for Transit Workers Getting Results

COVID-19 testing at MTA bus depots, rail yards, and other transit properties, identified 20 workers who had the contagious virus – but didn’t know it. As a result, those 20 workers managed to get medical attention, and quarantine themselves, more quickly. Testing continues to take place at bus and subway locations across the system to impede the spread.

]“This is exactly why we asked for this testing and screening program - to identify transit workers with the virus before they show symptoms like fever and fatigue,” TWU Local 100 President Tony Utano said. “This enables our members to get medical attention more quickly, and isolate themselves at home, so they don’t inadvertently pass the virus to others on the job or in their community.”

TWU Local 100 strongly advocated for this workforce screening initiative, starting with the release of our 10-Point Plan for a Re-Opened NYC in the spring. It is an ongoing program, and the schedule of locations is updated weekly on the MTA portal. Since late October, 3,027 workers have been tested on Transit property with 20 positive results. Another 278 visited a Northwell Urgent Care center for testing, 18 tested positive.

Transit workers are testing positive for COVID-19 at a lower rate than the citywide average, which has been at approximately 3%. The rate for workers who were tested at work is .66 percent. The positivity rate for transit workers, including the Northwell testing, is approximately 1%.

“We are working hard to fight this virus,” Utano said. “The vice presidents and officers are constantly monitoring the situation and pushing the MTA to do more. We have to remain vigilant and work together, and that includes wearing your masks, especially when indoors.”

TWU Mourns Former Mayor David Dinkins, 93

IB Image

TWU Local 100 is mourning the passing of former Mayor David Dinkins, a close friend of Local 100 leaders and members over the decades, and the first and only black Mayor in the history of New York City. Mayor Dinkins was 93 and died at his home in Harlem just a month after his beloved wife of 67 years, Joyce Elizabeth Burrows Dinkins, passed away.

TWU strongly supported Mr. Dinkins in his run for Mayor in the Democratic primary in 1989 against long-time Local 100 foe, Ed Koch, and then again in the general election against Rudolph Giuliani. The union again supported the Mayor in his close loss for reelection in 1993 to Giuliani.

The union remained close with the former Mayor over the years. He was a frequent visitor to Transport Hall, and was a special honoree at the union’s Black History Celebration in 2017.

Local 100 President Tony Utano said: “Mayor Dinkins’ passing is a sad day for Local 100 members and all of New York. He was a force for good in our City; a true unifier who effectively fought to bridge the racial and ethnic divides in our City and our country with intellect, kindness and humanity. His death is a great loss at a time when America desperately needs leaders who would espouse Mayor Dinkins’ theme of our society as a ‘gorgeous mosaic.’ He will be sorely missed.”

In 2017, Mayor Dinkins gave the keynote address to TWU Local 100 at our Black History celebration in Harlem. In this speech, he described how former Manhattan Borough President and broadcast executive Percy Sutton, and then Harry Belafonte, encouraged him to run for Mayor. He says: “If you want to seek public office because you want to see your name in lights, you’re not properly motivated. If you want to seek office to help people, that’s all right.”

“You have given me an opportunity to serve this great city,” he tells the Union audience. “When I went to school in Harlem I was told that the City is a melting pot. But I say it’s not a melting pot. Instead it’s what I call a gorgeous mosaic. People come from all of the world to make this city great.

“And I know there are some folks who don’t realize the contributions made by colored folks to this City and to the nation. But the White House was built with slave labor. What’s important is that we see good in the generation following us and give them the opportunity to achieve its potential. We owe them that.”

Read Mayor Dinkins' obit in the Daily News here.

IB Image

MaBSTOA Mounts White Line Safety Campaign

Don’t move your bus if riders are not maintaining a safe distance of at least six feet during a pandemic.

That’s the message TWU Local 100 officers and shop stewards delivered to Bus Operators at two big hubs in the Bronx last week as they launched the division’s “White Line Campaign.”

The officers and stewards, led by MaBSTOA Vice President Richard Davis, spoke to Bus Operators at two major hubs: White Plains Road/Pelham Parkway and White Plains Road/Gun Hill Road.

“All passengers have to be standing behind the white line at all times,” Chief Shop Steward Monique Rondon, explained. “If for some reason your bus is too crowded, stop and call control. Let control take command of the bus. Do not move the bus with people in front of your white line.”

Davis said he decided to launch the campaign after Bus Operators at recent shop-gate meetings reported white line infractions. The union delegation also urged Bus Operators to wear their masks properly and keep the partitions extended when riders are boarding or exiting. The outreach will continue at other bus stops in the Bronx and Manhattan, Davis said.

Liberty Lines Operator Honored for Saving a Baby's Life

Liberty Lines Bus Operator Anthony McPhail was walking out of a Yonkers deli after a coffee break when he heard a woman scream that her 4-month-old son was not breathing, CBS News reported. He cleared the child’s airway, performed CPR and saved the boy’s life. You can see the story here.

Brother McPhail (in uniform wearing black mask) was honored by Westchester elected officials, including State Senator Shelley Mayer (D-Yonkers). On hand from the TWU were Private Lines VP Pete Rosconi and Division Chair Carlos Bernabel.

Brother McPhail credits his CPR training with the save and urges everyone to learn CPR.

IB Image

We Choose to Fight: Union Not Agreeing to Concessions

Utano, Samuelsen to MTA: We Choose to Fight

Today the TWU blasted the MTA for a doomsday 2021 budget that has extreme service and job cuts. Local 100 President Tony Utano said: 

“The MTA's budget proposal is an outrageous and cowardly surrender to the Coronavirus, and a slap in the face of every transit worker. TWU Local 100, and the 40,000 transit workers who have risked life and limb to defeat the virus, reject this budget and demand the MTA withdraw it. Go back to the drawing board and come up with real solutions. Tossing thousands of workers onto the street and leaving entire neighborhoods without service are not answers.” 

“Real solutions could include ending the stock transfer tax rebate, increasing the gasoline tax, getting rid of high-priced consultants and contractors, replacing cleaning contractors with in-house forces and offering retirement incentives.”

TWU International President John Samuelsen said: “The cuts disproportionately target New York City and in doing so they’re definitely going to disproportionately impact communities of color and essentially the working poor. The MTA has sat around waiting for a federal bailout instead of looking for additional sources of revenue. The TWU will not open up our contracts, we will not bankroll the MTA out of the deficit caused by COVID-19. We choose fightback, not surrender."

Applications for M3 Tech Union Scholarships Available Now

NOVEMBER 17 -- Applications are now available for the M3 Technology/TWU Local 100 Scholarships. Over $100,000 in scholarships ranging from $10,000 to $1,000 will be awarded in 2021. You can download the application here. This program, sponsored by M3 Technology, provides scholarships to TWU Local 100 members and retirees in good standing, and their spouses, children, or grand-children enrolled at accredited colleges. The application deadline is May 31, 2021. Scholarship winners from previous years are welcome to apply again. Winners will be drawn in a public lottery drawing.

The application is fillable, so please complete it on your computer. Then save it and send it along to the indicated address by mail. Questions? You can reach our scholarship administrator, Shannon Poland, at spoland@twulocal100.org

Transit Workers Honored by Riders Allliance

A leading transit riders organization honored TWU Local 100 members Monday night for their heroic pandemic service with a special on-line tribute.

The Riders Alliance, which advocates for increased transit funding and system improvements, praised transit workers as a group for keeping New York City moving during this unprecedented crisis.

“We are here tonight to recognize their dedication, valor and sacrifice,” Riders Alliance Executive Director Betsy Plum said during the event. “As essential workers powered the pandemic response - health care workers, grocery store workers, pharmacy workers - it was the transit workers who were our unsung heroes - the heroes carrying heroes.”

Union Wins Additional Accommodations for Pregnant Workers

NOVEMBER 9 -- Union efforts to secure light-duty jobs for pregnant Local 100 members have resulted in an important agreement with management initially covering women in the Train Operator and Conductor titles.

Train Operators and Conductors with pregnancy-related medical restrictions will now be able to apply for Restricted Duty Announcer positions, TWU Local 100 President Tony Utano announced Monday. These temporary assignments will be for up to 60 days at a time - but also can be extended for additional 30-day periods.

“This is a significant union victory,” Utano said. “Pregnant women for the first time will have an opportunity fora real light-duty option that doesn’t include standing on their feet all day or doing physical labor. The agreement is an important first step to finally provide our union sisters, regardless of title, the opportunity to continue to work in jobs that will not threaten their health or the health of their babies. We have a way to go still but we are all thrilled that we have made this pivotal agreement with the MTA.”

RTO Vice President Eric Loegel said: "This is a long time in the making, and a big step forward for the women of RTO. I'm thrilled we've prevailed in providing true light duty accommodations for our members."

There are ongoing discussions between union leaders and management on ways to expanding this new initiative to other departments and titles.

TWU Local 100 has been battling with the MTA over the lack of reasonable accommodations for pregnant women with medical issues for some time now. Last year, Local 100 filed several lawsuits against the authority. Those cases are active and ongoing. The union also pressed the issue in contract negotiations last year. The multi-year contract, which members ratified overwhelmingly in January, included a pledge from the MTA to participate in a joint labor-management committee and continue talking about potential job set asides for pregnant workers, particularly those in service- delivery roles, like Train Operator and Conductor.

“We are now seeing the fruits of those contract-mandated discussions," Utano said. "We promised that contract language would lead to positive change, and that positive change is taking place."

The MTA has agreed to have four pregnant women in the specified RTO titles – at any one time – filling these Restricted Duty Announcer positions. Over the course of a year, that could mean dozens of women will benefit as members give birth and shift to maternity leave. To be eligible for the posts, workers have to be designated “restricted duty” by the Medical Assessment Center based on supporting documentation from their treating physician or physicians.

Local 100 Congratulates Joe Biden and Kamala Harris

Local 100 President Tony Utano issued the following statement on the election of the Biden-Harris team to lead America for the next four years.

"TWU Local 100 congratulates President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President elect Kamala Harris on their historic victory. We now look to the Biden-Harris administration to follow through on their stated commitment to support and strengthen unions in America. We also look to the Biden-Harris administration to invest in mass transit, enact policies addressing climate change, and fund – on an unprecedented level – job-creating infrastructure projects.

"All of this will take cooperation between Democrats and Republicans, and we hope the elected leaders of both parties genuinely look to find common ground and avoid the gridlock that too often stalls progress in Washington, D.C.

"Finally, Local 100 would like to recognize the milestones that have been reached. Voting records were smashed. And Senator Harris, who is of Indian and Jamaican heritage, will be the first woman, and the first woman of color, to become Vice President. We wish them well. Our Democracy is strong."