The conservative editors at the NY Daily News, Mort Zuckerman's team, to use a term by the more sympathetic Village Voice, did not think much of last week's NYC Transit Strike. The number of "you selfish ["gravy train"] asshole" epithets used suggests as much. This was also shown in the coverage, which did not quite go out of their way to tell both sides equally. OTOH, the paper does have good entertainment/sports/comics, and a few good progressive columnists.
But, the story does turn out to be complex, as suggested by a story today on the pension provisions of the final agreement. The story begins: "Thousands of bus and subway workers are poised to reap up to $14,000 each in a new contract pension windfall that will ease the pain of their strike penalties - but will cost commuters an estimated $110 million. News of the surprise Metropolitan Transportation Authority payout to up to 20,000 union members follows last week's crippling three-day strike, which cost the city an estimated $1 billion and wreaked pre-holiday chaos."
But, as we find out later: "'It'll probably balance out, but it's actually our money,' said bus driver Alfred Kwiatkowski, 50, of the lower East Side. ... Gov. Pataki twice vetoed bills that would have returned the money to workers like Rios, saying it was a matter for the bargaining table. So that's what the MTA did - agreeing to the one-time payment.' Factor in the average $1000 each union member lost during the strike.
The net result: "They both got what they could live with, which is what collective bargaining is all about," said Assemblyman Richard Brodsky (D-Westchester). The parent union was hesitant about the strike, but the local was much less so. They elected an outspoken leader partly to get respect. The excessive number of disciplinary actions, again individual stories were not often seen in the NY Daily News, suggest a reason why they wanted it. And, there were some real financial concerns.
Maybe, others didn't have it so well, but Republicans like Gov. Pataki (again, MIA in the final days before the strike) and billionaire Mayor Bloomberg really shouldn't go there. Or, many of the policies of their own party might be raised. The importance of organized action, organized labor, should not be ignored. Lobbying by corporations suggest they think organized action is useful. Why suddenly is it not when workers are involved? When we are talking about 27K pensions ... less than the tax write offs of many helped by Bush tax cuts? Is it "all those losers without unions manage with less ... so stop whining?"
Again, we hear about the horrible results of the strike. NYC managed. I'm not sure how "crippling" it was -- when we had that blackout here (that did not start at midnight but in the middle of the afternoon), maybe that word is appropriate. Not when there was still multiple ways to get into the City, including some means of public transportation not affected by the strike. It surely hurt, but when was the last time we had a strike of this nature? Well, not for a pretty long time. Again, I think it useful to have a taste of worker unrest to show they still are there. Even, if it is debatable that it was necessary.
[The necessary nature does suggest the justice of breaking a law against such public sector strikes, though the transit (as noted) is not as important as police and fire services. OTOH, as noted by one writer, the other side appears to had broken the law too by altering the pension arrangement without legislative approval. Anyway, that is what the fines and so forth are all about ... and part of the reason the strike was only three days.] Or, is it only important to respect the President and other better paid sorts of that ilk?
For a mixed view of things, see here, which has some good Atrios links too. Kevin Drum's wariness also led to some good comments. One key issue: with apologies to my brother, the work leaves something to be desired. Yes, you don't get shot at or go into buildings on fire, but it is often pretty unhealthy and stressful work.
Jokes aside, our transit system is rather wondrous given the size and volume of passengers on a daily basis. The strike forced us to see who ensures our $2 (this week, $1 ... the loss of funds apparently was not THAT major) ride goes smoothly. Hopefully, it helped.