By Tyler Sonderholzer
On Nov. 3, maintenance workers of the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) went on strike after contract negotiations with OCTA broke down. The county’s bus service will be suspended as OCTA does have enough workers to gas up and provide other maintenance services.
This came after the union, Teamster Local 952, agreed to a request from Governor Gavin Newsom to resume the contract negotiations. OCTA maintenance employees previously unanimously voted to strike on Oct. 12, and they were scheduled to strike on Oct. 17 until the union agreed to resume contract negotiations. However, the negotiations broke down on Oct. 31 when the union claimed that OCTA walked away from the negotiating table.
According to a press release from the union Secretary-Treasurer Eric Jiminez, the original vote to strike came after OCTA refused to address key health and welfare issues and workers rejected a “substandard final contract offer.”
The previous contract with OCTA and the union, consisting of 150 mechanics, machinists and service workers, expired on Sept. 30. Both sides attempted to agree on issues such as wages, pension increases and adjustments to lower healthcare costs; however, they were unable to reach a decision.
OCTA was hoping to reach a three-year contract agreement with the union that is similar to the one reached with bus drivers back in February. The union went on strike due to a desire for increased pay, bonus pay and guaranteed breaks, which the former contract agreement provided.
