Justin Kemerer portrays “Pepper! The Greed Fighting Possum,” an informal mascot for fighting management, pickets at the LTD Bus Station Thursday evening.
Citizens from Eugene and the surrounding area rallied at the Lane Transit District downtown station Thursday afternoon with LTD bus drivers and members of unions around the Northwest, showing support for the drivers’ contract
negotiations with LTD representatives.
About 100 people picketed on the corner of West 10th Avenue and Olive Street, holding signs condemning LTD’s leadership and demanding LTD offer a new contract that does not decrease benefits.
“We felt we had to alert people because the negotiations are deteriorating,” Amalgamated Transit Union Division 757 spokesman Jason Reynolds said.
ATU represents 80 percent of LTD’s workers, and LTDrepresentatives have said a union strike would halt all LTD services.
According to LTD, nearly 3,000 University students and employees use the bus to get to and from campus. LTD gets $583,250 in student fees to provide students with “unlimited ridership on all routes and schedules,” as stated in its
contract with the University.
Reynolds said the purpose of the rally was to prevent a strike by showing LTD representatives the support the union has throughout the community.
LTD bus driver Richard Shrope said all drivers understand how devastating a strike could be and are hopeful one can be avoided.
“We’re hoping to get people aware of what’s going on so maybe there can be some pressure on people to get things resolved,” Shrope said.
Many LTD riders said they were unaware of a potential strike until the rally and were alarmed at the thought of being without bus service.
“It’ll put the public in a big crisis,” Bridget Perini said.
Perini, 23, who lives in Cottage Grove with her 3-year-old son, said she depends on the bus to get to and from Eugene for errands and appointments.
“You can’t do that without the bus,” she said.
John Sannes, an ATU liaison officer representing C-TRAN bus drivers in Vancouver, Wash., said the level of support for the union cause will only increase as time passes, especially if a strike happens.
Sannes said if union workers encounter a picket line, it is the general practice to avoid crossing it. This poses more problems for the city because other union-provided services could possibly be halted.
“If they actually go out on strike, the other unions in the area will honor that picket line,” Sannes said.
John Evans, a member of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, said he was at the rally out of support for the union cause and out of appreciation for the ATU’s help in his union’s causes.
“They have supported us in other campaigns we’ve had,” Evans said.
ATU member Shirley Gilmore, a C-TRAN driver in Vancouver, said bus service is essential for any city and showing support for the LTD drivers is necessary to uphold quality service.
“We’re in support of our union brothers and sisters,” Gilmore said.
Eugene resident Sarah Jacobson joined union members and other residents at the rally, saying the bus is a crucial public service that needs to be maintained.
“In order for it to be a quality service, you can’t treat the people who provide it like garbage,” Jacobson said.
Negotiations between ATU and LTD have been going on since May and are currently at a standstill. The union is required to give a 10-day strike notice, and the earliest that notice can be given is Jan. 15, making Jan. 25 the earliest day a bus strike could happen.
More than 200 LTD drivers have signed a petition condemning LTD leadership and declaring “no confidence” in LTD General Manager Ken Hamm, citing his “inability to lead the transit district.”
LTD Service Planning and Marketing Manager Andy Vobora said the union’s concerns with the proposed health-care plan cannot be quelled by reverting back to the old plan because such a plan is too costly.
“We have to present a balanced budget, and our proposal does that,” Vobora said.
