Unions stress need for change over parade pageantry

Union members embraced the adoration of the ticker tape parade, but are holding steadfast in post-pandemic demands. Eagle photo by Liam Quigley

By Rachel Vick

Transit workers spent the pandemic ensuring that other essential workers got to their jobs, putting their lives on the line — now they want to make sure they are protected for future high-risk situations.  

Members of the Amalgamated Transit Union are calling for more than a ticker tape parade; they want tangible change in the form of respect from MTA employers in contract negotiations and hazard pay.

The ATU members and those of other Queens unions, say they are appreciative of the city’s recognition of their members’ hard work and sacrifice throughout the pandemic, but that with celebration must come change.

“Our members cannot participate in any celebration when government officials allow the perpetuation of a system that puts our members at risk each day.” ATU leaders wrote in a letter requesting contract settlements and hazard pay from the MTA.

Some parade attendees echoed the need for equitable treatment amidst the celebrations, carrying signs calling for fair pay, criticizing the growing wage gap and emphasizing the need for hazard pay.

“What we want? We want hazard pay,” said parade attendee Tony Utano, president of TWU Local 100. “When we were out in the pandemic we were moving the city 24/7. While people were home and were told to stay home, we were told to go to work.” 

“We went to work [and] we paid a price. We had sicknesses, we had deaths and now we deserve the hazard pay,” he added to the supportive cheers of those standing nearby. “Now's the time; the city’s got the money, the state’s got the money — they need to dish it out.” 

During an appearance on The Wall Street Journal’s The Journal Podcast a few months later, MTA Chairman Pat Foye said that while the agency supports hazard pay it “ought to be a federal responsibility.” 

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Transport Workers Union Local 100, and the Transport Workers Union of America, reached an agreement establishing a COVID-19 death benefit for TWU members in April 2020 — more than 150 MTA employees, many of whom are represented by the union, died from COVID-19 since that March.

“We are grateful to all of our bus operators for their heroic work to keep the city moving throughout the pandemic,” an MTA spokesperson told the Eagle. “As a matter of policy, we do not negotiate labor contracts in the press.”

The Legal Aid Society rallied behind essential workers to join criticism of the decision to spend money on a parade instead of financial support for those who risked their lives throughout the pandemic.

They suggested that  “the precious dollars spent on this parade should have instead been allocated to fund cost of living increases and pay parity for public defenders and civil legal services staff.”

“While we are proud to celebrate the work of our staff, and stand with fellow first responders and essential workers whose collective efforts literally saved countless lives throughout the COVID-19 pandemic,” they added. “Mayor de Blasio and his Administration cannot credibly ask so many of the workers who risked their lives during the last year to settle for a parade rather than receive the compensation that they are rightfully owed.”

 Additional reporting by Liam Quigley.