New York, January 18th - The 13-day transit strike was of great significance for organised labour even though the Transport Workers Union's new two year contract falls far short of rank and file demands, It was the most effective demonstration of the latent power of American workers in many years, and its lessons will surely be absorbed by union militants across the country, The unity and fighting spirit of the 36,000 transit workers in the face of injunction, jailing and press attack was like a fresh breeze in the union movement. Full terms of the agreement with the city Transit Authority are not yet public and it will be at least two weeks before the results of a mail ballot on the contract by TWU members will be known, The overall increase is estimated between $50 and $70 million, more than double the Transit Authority's final offer before the strike. According to the January 15 AFL-CIO News; however, transit workers "will receive an immediate A% raise, an additional 4% January 1, 1967, and a 7% raise on July 1, 1967. For $3.22 an hour bus driver, it will mean raises to $5.35, $3.48, and finally to $3.73 an hour." Wages of another category of workers, subway motormen, will go from 93.46 an hour tn $4.00 over the same period of time. The average pay of transit is only $3.13 an hour, however, and their pay, even after the above increases, will still be less than other city employees for comparable works In addition to this city-wide wage differential, it is not yet clear what if anything was done to eliminate wage inequities among transit workers themselves, The most serious is the lower wages paid Negro and Puerto Rican transit workers who make up some 40 to 45 percent of the membership of the TW), Other reported contract gains include allowances for work uniforms, an improved health and welfare plan and better life insurance. Another condition for settlement was the release from jail of TWU President Mike Quill and eight other strike leaders charged with violating an antistrike injunction, Also dropped was a suit for $332,200 a day darmzes against the TWU which was filed by the Transit Authority. To achieve these modest gains, union negotiators headed by TWU Internatio-= nal Vice President Douglas MacMahon withdrew some major union demands. First and foremost was the 32-hour-week with a 30% pay increase, So popular was this demand that it appeared scrawled in yellow chalk on the side of subway . cars after the strike was over. An example of the importance of this demand is provided by the January 12 Michigan AFL-CIO Newse In a report on the transit strike it said "8,000 to 10,000 jobs have been lost over the last several years but attrition has taken care of the crisis, As men retire or die they are simply not replaced, One report on the settlement indicates union negotiators agreed to a continuing policy of job reduction through attrition and that workers will be given an extra bonus of $500 if they retire while the contract is in effect, Finally, union negotiators apparently were unable to force the Transit Authority to stop using company spies or "beakies" to pry into personal lives and working conditions of TWU members, One of the main reasons the full power of the transit strike could not be used to wring more concessions for the Transit Authority, was the lack of all-out support from top leaders of the AFL-CIO. Although more than 50 union leaders sent messages of support to the strike they were mainly directed to demand that the jailed leaders be released, and none of the top leaders supported the overall demands of the rank and file workers, AFL-CIO President George Meany played the role of strike breaker by publically criticising the strike and praising Mayor Lindsay, — denounced
New York Transport strike continued/
the striking union as "lawless", Meany's partner kept his mouth shut
during the strike, but after it was over he denounced the New York transit
workers before a meeting of the Economics Club in Detroit. He called
strikes by public employees "obsolete" and suggested the formation of a
labour, industry and Government board to handle the needs of public workers
in the future, "Society," he intoned, “can't tolerate stoppages which
endanger the very existence of society," Again not a word in defence of
the strikers! demands, President Lyndon Johnson: gave still another
reason for opposing the strike and subsequent wage settlement. He
complained that it violated his wage guideline of 3.2% increases for
workers which is allegedly designed to prevent inflation and rising
living costs, Johnson is not nearly as concerned about rising prices and
profits for the corporations.
While the strike was on, for example, U.S. Steel announced plans tn
increase its profits by raising steel prices and the President had his
press secretary announce that the price hike was justified. The same U.S.
Steel is one of five steel companies charged with conspiring to fix the
price on subway wheels. Johnson went a step further than mere criticism
in his State of the Union speech by proposing new anti-strike legislation
which would be directed against the whole labour movement, But he was
not the only capitalist politician who oppnsed the transit strike, New
York Governor Rockefeller, whose family helped finance and subsequently
made a’ fortune from the New York transit system, has also proposed new,
more effective anti-labour legislation to curb strikes, New York City's
Republican Mayor Lindsay used existing strike-breaking laws by enforcing
the anti-strike injunction that resulted in the arrest af strike leaders.
Finally, Democratic Mayor Wagner, who could have granted the transit
workers just demands as late as December 31, ducked out to Mexicn before
his term ran oute
Despite these tremendous obstacles the rank and file power of the transit
workers strike was of great educational value to all workers. First- of
all it brushed aside President Johnson's phony 3.2% wage guide and demonst-_
rated that this policy was an obstacle to workers fighting for better
conditions. Secondly the opposition to the strike by both Democrats and
Republicans ran counter to the illusion still held by many workers that
they had any friends in either capitalist party, Third, the strike-breaking
role of Meany and other top union leaders branded them as saboteurs of the
legitimate demands of rank and file workers everywhere. Fourth, the
tremendous rank and file solidarity: and power of the transit strikers was
a tonic td union militants and helped point out the need to build a left
wing in the unions that would kick Meany, Reuther, and other high paid fat
cats out of office, First and foremost among the demands of these opponents
to labour misleaders is the need to break with the strike-breaking boss
parties and organise a genuine independent labour partye