Ridership update:

We have been getting emails and calls asking for an explanation as to how we have come to this point with Veolia Transportation.  To be as responsive as we can, I will try and outline the issues as I go on.

On January 29, 2010 Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1433 sent out a request to bargain of the contract that was set to expire on June 30, 2011.  The Union was prepared to negotiate the agreement six (6) months prior to the expiration.  However, Veolia would not meet with the Union until mid-June due to the issues between the City and Veolia.

The City of Phoenix and Veolia:

In 2009 the City of Phoenix decided to send out an "RFP" or "Request for Proposals" due to the fact that Veolia's city contract was set to expire.  The city did not want to lose federal funding again, so they were very careful to bid the contract out.  Several years ago, the City lost federal assistance when they gave a no bid contract to a transit provider, Veolia Transportation.  Ultimately the contract to operate transit services out of the North and South facilities was awarded to Veolia Transportation.  Veolia's contract is for $388,000,000 according to "Section 2 Compensation (a)" of the City contract with Veolia, #128473.  Veolia and the City could not agree on sick time and pension liability, even though all of the bidders were told that those two (2) issues were not part of the procurement process.  In order to settle the issue, the City agreed to give Veolia an additional $28,000,000, which was settled in a document titled "Settlement Agreement and Release" that was approved by the Phoenix City Council on May 19, 2010.  It has been alleged that there was some improprieties by the Mayor regarding how Veolia was awarded this contract and his personal relationship to a Veolia consultant.  The Federal Transit Administration is apparently conducting an investigation. 

There was no legitimate reason for Veolia to fail to meet with the Union during the six (6) month period that they spent milking Phoenix taxpayers for $28,000,000 more.  So, Veolia was awarded a contract worth $388,000,000 dollars, also received $28,000,000 dollars for sick time and pension liability and on top of that they also receive over a 12% (according to "Exhibit B Fee Schedule") increase during the term.  If that was not good enough, the City agreed to waive any fine for a strike during the first round of negotiations, taking away any incentive for Veolia to bargain in good faith with the Union(s).

Veolia and the ATU:

When Veolia finally found the time to meet with the ATU, things started off well.  We were meeting with a Regional guy who negotiates their contracts for them.  When Veolia decided to try and force concessions on the drivers and bargain in bad faith, their Regional guy wanted nothing to do with it and quit.  Veolia then brought in attorneys, who did not have the conscience that their former employee had.  These attorneys took several days to get brought up to speed and then Veolia fired one of them.  At that time Veolia brought in the attorney that got them involved in the "unfair labor practices" and who caused all of the issues that we now have.  He unlawfully locked out the Teamsters who fuel and clean the buses, in an attempt to force a strike of all employees.  It was the Union's, the ATU, the Teamsters and the Operating Engineers who refused to take the bait...and we kept working.  We kept working because of our commitment to the riding public.  We knew that Veolia's game was a set up and we did not fall for it.  Veolia would actually increase their profit on a labor strike.  Not only would they not get fined by the city, they would pay no payroll, no insurance premiums, etc.

The ATU finally became so upset with Veolia's refusal to bargain and "Unfair Labor Practices" that we filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board, which is an independent governmental agency that is charged with investigating and issuing remedies for "Unfair Labor Practices" committed by Employers and Unions.  To be fair, Veolia also filed charges against the ATU, all of which were dismissed, even after several appeals by Veolia's high paid attorney.  On the other hand, the NLRB upheld every claim that the Union had filed against Veolia.  Veolia has recently posted a notice on the property that states that they will not engage in the unlawful activity that they have been engaged in over the course of the previous year. 

Issues

Sick Time:

Veolia Operators on the Phoenix property under the expired contract could accumulate a maximum of one hundred and forty-four (144) days sick leave.  (Remember, the City gave Veolia $28 million to cover sick leave and pension)  Veolia only bargained that the Union must give up all sick time above thirty-five (35) days.  They did that for months and that would be asking these workers, who have spent years earning that time to give it back.  Employees don't earn sick time unless they come to work and to earn 144 days at 12 per year and employee would have to have worked for twelve (12) years with good attendance.  Going from 144 days to 35 would have been a loss of 109 sick days paid at $22.41 per hour or a total loss of $19,541.52.  What will Veolia do with that money; they will mark it as profit and send it to France, which is where they are headquartered.  The Union made a difficult decision and agreed to reduce that one hundred and forty-four (144) days to sixty (60) days, which would coincide with an employees need for FMLA.  That was a concession to Veolia of eighty-four (84) days per employee at $22.41 per hour or a total profit to Veolia of $15,059.52 per employee.  That was just not good enough for Veolia and the issue now is cash out.  For over twenty years, Veolia has cashed out employee sick time at retirement.  This is exactly why employees earn the sick time and come to work and build up that bank, because it helps them enter into retirement.  After being paid twenty-eight (28) million to fund sick time and pension liability, Veolia has refused to pay out to retiring employees what they have spent a lifetime building. 

Wages:

Veolia is only proposing a wage freeze for the first year of the contract, that would account to three years of no wage increases to the employees (they have now gone 2 years with no increase).  Veolia is also attempting to set up a two-tier wage structure that if allowed to happen will, over time, reduce the overall wages for all employees by twenty (20) percent.  While Veolia is enjoying huge economic profits off of the taxpayers, they are refusing to share those profits, even slightly, with their employees.  Well, except for the CEO whose personal salary is $2,208,858 per year and their local management team.  The salary of Veolia’s general manager in Phoenix was recently increased from $134,000 to $180,000.  He also gets a $15,000 bonus, a free apartment, and plane tickets every other weekend to fly home to Las Vegas.  The company has also added two new Phoenix assistant general managers who earn a combined $240,000.  Veolia is a foreign corporation whose U.S. transportation division generated $1,400,000,000 (that is 1.4 BILLION) last year.

Health Care:

The Union agreed to move into Veolia's corporate health care plan.  Five (5) years ago, the employees (NOT VEOLIA) agreed to give up a 1.15% wage increase and apply that to a health care contribution for employees with dependents.  The Union has only proposed to continue that contribution rate (a contribution that the employees made, instead of taking in wages) at the 1.15%.  That was a known cost to Veolia, but they want to cut that in half and pocket the difference.  Again, they are only looking to profit out of the wallets of their employees.

Vacation:

The Union has never, not one time requested any additional time for vacation.  Veolia has only proposed less vacation time. 

Duration:

Veolia has only proposed a five (5) year contract.  That would be five (5) years of worsening Operators wages and benefits.  The ATU International President has told Veolia's CEO that the ATU cannot authorize a contract that will go over three (3) yeas.

Unfair Labor Practice:

Veolia has recently conceded to over a year of bad faith bargaining.  They have tried time and time again to force the bus drivers out on strike, with never any intent to reach a settlement.  Their only goal in these negotiations is to profiteer. 

Section 13(c):

Back in 1976 the City of Phoenix, Veolia (then known as Phoenix Transit) and the ATU entered into an agreement required under Section 13(c) of the Urban Mass Transit Act" of 1964.  Among other things, the agreement requires that an employer not worsen the working conditions of transit employees unilaterally.  We can give up vacation time and sick time, but they cannot impose it.  Now that Veolia has identified that they plan to impose a worsening on us, we will file a claim against the recipient of Federal funds who is the City of Phoenix.

There you have it and these are primarily all of the issues between the ATU and Veolia.  What we want the public to know is that we are not being greedy simply by asking to keep what we already have.  What we want the public to know is that the Operators who drive you every day have simply refused time and time again to strike.  They have made it clear to the Union that they will only walk off of the job as a last resort, when no other alternative can be reached.  When we last met with Veolia, we offered to enter into binding arbitration with them.  Binding arbitration would have avoided a strike and a third party neutral arbitrator would have decided the outcome.  What was Veolia's response?  NO!

At this time, we are again trying to avoid a strike, but Veolia is again pushing for it.  We are not sure what other options we are left with.  Veolia, even though they only recently stated in a posting through the NLRB that they will bargain with us, are now refusing to bargain and have told us that they will impose these worsening's on us. 

If you want to help avoid a strike, contact the Mayor, contact your City Council Representative, contact the City Manager’s Office and contact the Public Transit Department and demand that this foreign company end their unlawful actions and bargain with the Union to reach a legitimate contract, one that is actually fair to both side and not simply to make the rich richer.

As Always,

Thanks!

Michael L. Cornelius

Vice President

Amalgamated Transit Union