LIRR Union Negotiations/Newsday Editorial

I guess 11% over 6 years is not enough

http://nypost.com/2014/04/25/lirr-union ... otiations/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Its not the percentage that kills the deal, its what MTA wants in givebacks , which will result in a drop in income.

You know what they say ? The devil is in the details. When I started my many years ago my car cost 18,500 , well today the same car is 30k or 39 percent more. My salary has not gone up by 39 percent , NY is one of the most expensive places to raise a family in the world . This is about keeping up with inflation .

Read this my friends. http://nypost.com/2014/04/24/mta-raises ... -retirees/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

No where in the current news cycle are the MTA's call for give backs in this deal discussed . The MTA is asking for 9% pension contribution from the current zero percent, which BTW was negotiated for. The MTA is asking for a 2% Medical contribution , when added together this is 11% percent given back . The deal calls for 11% more salary, now I know I am pea brained knuckle dragger union employee(greedy too) , but isn't that a net of zero ? We have been without a contract since 2010 and this contract runs until 2016 , so 7 years of net zero? Even our illustrious Gov only wanted 3 years of net zero raises . How can 7 years without any raise be considered fair or reasonable , just asking?

How many buses are we going to need if a strike happens, provided 390K worth of people on a working day?

A key MTA committee on Monday advanced a plan to hire private bus providers to help get commuters to and from work in the event of a Long Island Rail Road union strike this summer, a move some officials said could work against efforts to resolve a contract deadlock.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board's Long Island Rail Road Committee approved issuing the request for proposals from bus companies, despite the objections of one MTA board member, who said the move could be seen as an attempt to "provoke" the unions.

LIRR officials said although a strike would not come before July, seeking bids now is necessary to properly advertise the contract and be able to choose from several qualified vendors.

MTA panel OK's plan to hire private buses if LIRR unions strike

The class envy is running wild at the rag site Newsday in the comments section. The consensus from the public is no support for labor. MTA must be in its glory. I used today's Newsday to line my dog's kennel because it has a case of the runs.

Using busses may have worked in bridging the gap in service between Stamford and Bridgeport after the MNR derailment last May, but on Long Island? For how many main and branch lines' worth of commuters? The HOV lanes may end up becoming their own parking lots!

You'd need 7,090 buses stretching nose to nose 64 miles on the Long Island Expressway.

The MTA spent $1.8 million to reserve 418 buses from vendors between Providence and Richmond.

LongIslandTool wrote:The MTA spent $1.8 million to reserve 418 buses from vendors between Providence and Richmond.

Where did this figure come from? The RFP hasn't even been let yet.

As of this morning there are still no postings of an applicable RFP on the NYS Contract Reporter (https://www.nyscr.ny.gov/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;) or the MTA Opportunities (http://web.mta.info/mta/procurement/current.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;) web sites. I don't see how they could have let those contracts without an RFP (each contract with each of those bus companites would be separate, so it would post as an RFP for multiple vendors, and each vendor would sign a unique contract [although each would have identical 'standard assurances'] as I understand it).

rdl1972 wrote:You know what they say ? The devil is in the details. When I started my many years ago my car cost 18,500 , well today the same car is 30k or 39 percent more. My salary has not gone up by 39 percent , NY is one of the most expensive places to raise a family in the world . This is about keeping up with inflation .

The car analogy doesn't work well here. Cars are getting a lot more sophisticated with newer tech and us
systems that cost more.

Carry on.

How about the bread analogy. Carry on.

As of COB today (Friday), still no RFP on either of the web sites.

docsteve wrote:As of this morning there are still no postings of an applicable RFP on the NYS Contract Reporter (https://www.nyscr.ny.gov/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;) or the MTA Opportunities (http://web.mta.info/mta/procurement/current.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;) web sites. I don't see how they could have let those contracts without an RFP (each contract with each of those bus companites would be separate, so it would post as an RFP for multiple vendors, and each vendor would sign a unique contract [although each would have identical 'standard assurances'] as I understand it).

Don't waste you time turning pages for a Request for Proposal. There wasn't one and won't ever be one.

I understand your point but even sole source contracts need to be posted, and there is way too much lead time before the strike date to do contracts on an emergency basis.