Health-plan premiums, pay hike in offer to bus drivers

Thursday, May 2, 2002 | 10:14 a.m.

Some bus drivers for the regional system could receive a 40 percent pay raise, but the drivers would have to start paying heavy health-plan premiums under a proposed new contract, the drivers union local president said Wednesday.

Frank Opdyke, Amalgamated Transit Union local president, said about 900 drivers and mechanics will vote on the contract offer Monday or Tuesday. He said union leadership is leaving the question open to the rank-and-file.

The workers have authorized a strike, which could happen as soon as next week. ATC, the management company that runs the system for the Regional Transportation Company, has vowed to keep the system's 51 routes working with replacement workers if necessary.

But Opdyke warned that under the terms of the contract's new health plan payments, some drivers might not see any wage increase at all. The union's members now pay nothing for medical insurance, he said.

Drivers in higher hourly wage brackets also would get much smaller wage increases. While those who now make $11 per hour would get $14.25 by 2005, those who now make $14 per hour would receive a little more than $16 in four years, Opdyke said.

Under the new contract, workers would pay $20 a month for individual coverage and $120 a month for family coverage. But Opdyke said the biggest problem is that any future increase in premiums would be split between the management company and the workers.

"After you agree to start paying health benefits out of your wage increases, you don't have wage increases anymore," he said.

ATC spokeswoman Valerie Michaels said the plan is fair.

"We haven't heard that union leadership is recommending to reject," she said.

The system's 150,000 daily riders would not be affected by a work action due to the company's plan to bring in replacement workers, Michaels said.

The union, however, has said the system would not be able to import enough workers to keep the system running.

"We don't anticipate having to reduce service," agreed Heather Curry, RTC spokeswoman. "If it comes to that, we will work with ATC on that."