On Wednesday, members of the Capital Metro bus drivers union – Amalgamated Transit Union 1091 – voted by a wide margin to reject Cap Metro’s proposed contract and to authorize a strike. Over 400 of the roughly 600 or so union members who work for Cap Metro labor contractor StarTran voted to strike, while around 40 voted against. Union President Jay Wyatt said union elections usually draw only about 50% of the membership, but there was a higher-than-usual turnout for this vote.

Wyatt said he has sent a letter to StarTran general manager Terry Garcia Crews asking her to return to the negotiating table, in hopes that a strike can be avoided, but union members who spoke at the meeting made it clear that they’re ready to take to the picket lines should management remain intransigent.

The last time the union went on strike was in 2005, when ATU 1091 staged a largely symbolic one-day strike, and a last-minute compromise prevented a more prolonged work stoppage at the start of 2006.

This article appears in August 15 • 2008.

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