Outrage grows over San Francisco Muni operators' pay

C.W. Nevius
Thursday, February 25, 2010

The city's Muni operators are about to have one of those "uh-oh" moments. You know, that awkward instant when a group realizes that it overplayed its hand - badly.

C.W. NEVIUS

Even in San Francisco, a union town where labor issues are treated with kid gloves, politicians and transit riders are teeing off on the drivers like they stole rent money from little old ladies.

"There is no question in my mind that they completely misread the public," Mayor Gavin Newsom said Wednesday. "Either they step up or the people of San Francisco will."

Riders have already seen fare hikes and service cuts and they may face them again thanks to Muni operators who rejected a proposal for a package of concessions that would have saved the agency $15 million over two years. Those savings could have temporarily reduced service cuts and some fee hikes.

But 575 operators voted in favor of the concessions and 857 were against the plan even though Muni operators are guaranteed an 8 percent raise. Their pay, protected by the city charter, ensures they are at least the second-highest paid operators in the nation.



Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/02/25/BADE1C6IDD.DTL

1) Unions demanding greater-than-COLA/inflation-pay-raises
2) Hospitals unable to refuse services to people who will never pay
3) Mandated spending for medi-cal, pensions, welfare
4) Highest property tax rates/income in the country
5) Highest recycling/fees/sales-tax rates/income in the country

California is in serious trouble. We cant raise our taxes anymore, and the revenues are
dropping due to the economy and people leaving the state.

How much longer can we keep increasing the pay of government employees while
regular mom and pop business owners suffer?

Whoa.

2. is the most disgusting of your list. You want hospitals to refuse medical service to the poor?

They want the poor to go to "charity" if they can't pay for health care.

They seem to think that there is lots of this "charity" to go around.

Their grip on reality is, at best, highly tenuous.

Puke4Life isn't gonna last very long IMHO.

All California needs is a wealth tax, steeply graduated, with the highest bracket paying through the nose. Do that and folks could ride the bus for free.

How's that work for ya?

Great idea. Do you think Puke4Life will like it?

What's with all the union bashing here?

Eau de TROLL. Kinda smells like cabbage and dog shit.

It makes sense in a nation where we've only resisted using consumer tactics (boycott everything!) as opposed to supporting labor.

like only insurance executives are supposed to make more than the minimum

The driver pay is set in the city charter to average out against the two highest paid transit systems in the country. It's the only one in the city not done through negotiation. Money is short right now and a lot of city personnel have taken temporary pay cuts but the Transit Workers Union is refusing to budge on re-negotiating. This will mean big fare hikes and massive service cuts in a city where the poor and middle class rely on public transit.

Add to that an unsavory history with the leadership of TWU local 250, some drivers gaming the very generous overtime system and the unbelievable perks for MUNI drivers like being able to just not show up for work. Not call in sick, but to not show up for days at a time before being censured. Not fired.

Personally, I've been on a crowded bus when the driver just stopped, blocking the road, while the driver got out and went into a restaurant and ordered food. People on the bus were yelling 10 minutes later when the driver hopped back on with his dinner. This type of thing isn't by any means an isolated incident. Complaints seem to go nowhere and service has gotten worse.

Drivers should make a good wage it's a hard job but even here in San Francisco, a hugely pro-union town, people here are feeling taken for a ride (the bad kind of ride) by the MUNI drivers. In a town as pro-union as this... that should tell you something.

I was wondering why such a pro-union city as San Francisco would be upset, but if what you say is true, then I can see why.

The devil's in the details on this one.