Public transit workers in Philadelphia go
on strike as contract expires
Send a link to a friend
[November 01, 2016]
(Reuters) - Public transportation
workers in Philadelphia went on strike at midnight on Monday after they
were unable to reach a contract agreement with the transit system that
provides almost one million rides a day in and around the fifth largest
U.S. city.
Some 4,700 workers represented by the Transport Workers Union
Local 234 went on strike after their contract with Southeastern
Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) expired, the transit
system said in a statement.
The strike will shut down bus and most trolley routes in
Philadelphia, leaving hundreds of thousands of workers and students
to find different ways to get to their jobs and schools on Tuesday.
"We ask everyone to be prepared for very crowded trains and travel
inconveniences," SEPTA said on its website.
The School District of Philadelphia said late on Monday night that
all of its schools would remain open and students and employees were
expected to report to work and school on Tuesday.
About 60,000 public, private and charter school students use the
public transportation system each day, local media reported.
The contract expired at midnight on Monday after, union members and
system officials were unable to reach an agreement over health care
benefits, pensions and issues involving worker conditions, local
media reported.
[to top of second column] |
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2016/Nov/01/images/ads/current/lpd_basketball_lda_100416.png)
The strike drew concerns from city officials over what interrupted
public transit could potentially mean for voters on Election Day
when they go to the polls next Tuesday to elect the next U.S.
president.
“We’ve always had difficulty, on a good day, to be able to have
enough support to move people to polling places,” City Council
President Darrell Clarke told PhillyVoice.com. “So if there is not
public transportation we will clearly have a problem.”
(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Mark Potter)
[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2016 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2016/Nov/01/images/ads/current/Martin_Farms_daily_sda_2015.png)
|