Spitzer showed himself to be a Democratic Governor today by announcing his support for the Transit Workers Union. There is nothing better than a strong collective workforce when you want to bargain for fair pay and good treatment. As Attorney General he angered the brass of the TWU by stripping them of automatic deductions from workers' checks to pay for dues but that seems like it might come to an end. He has agreed that they should be able to collect the money to remain fiscally secure.
From The Daily News:
In a move sure to spark controversy, Spitzer will support the financially struggling TWU Local 100 if it seeks to win back the right to automatically deduct dues from workers' paychecks, according to a labor leader familiar with the governor's plan.
"The governor is trying to position himself to see a productive collective-bargaining season in 2008," the union leader said, noting that the historically bad relationship between the TWU and the MTA has long complicated contract talks.
"He'll take the public relations hit now because at the end of the contract, he doesn't want to go through that kind of problem again," the leader concluded. "He's positioning himself, putting himself and the MTA in a better position for the future."
Yeah the MTA will be pissed, but sometimes you need to act for everyone's own good. The men and women that keep our trains and buses humming deserve the best conditions out there. The people at the top of the MTA often do not have it all together, something that helped prompt the strike two years ago. If the TWU can sit up straighter at next year's round of talks to renegotiate their contracts, that will not only help transit workers' future, it will keep the MTA working as smoothly as possible.
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