Protesting Fairfax County's failure to oversee private contractor MV Transportation, dozens of bus operators, mechanics, and other Fairfax Connector transit workers planned to flood the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors meeting yesterday. Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1764, which represents most of the nearly 600 transit employees at the Fairfax Connector, says that despite a contract with the county that included funding to provide retirement security, MV has failed to provide its employees with a viable retirement plan.
"We are the only county workers who will devote their lives to Fairfax and walk away with nothing to retire on," said Sesil Rubain, ATU Local 1764 trustee. Adding insult to injury, Rubain says that union members forfeited a 2% pay raise in 2012 to help fund the still non-existent pension plan. "MV has pocketed taxpayer money and the workers' deferred raises and is sending the profits back to Texas,” Rubain said. “It's unconscionable." For the latest local labor calendar listings, go to dclabor.org and click on Calendar. Here’s today's labor history: On this date in 1869, William Sylvis died. Sylvis is best remembered as a founder of the Iron Molders' International Union and the National Labor Union, the latter being one of the first American union federations attempting to unite workers of various crafts into a single national organization. The founding convention of the National Labor Union in August 1866, was attended by 60 delegates, representing 43 local unions, 11 trade assemblies, four Eight-hour Leagues, and two national or international unions. Ironically, Sylvis was unable to attend the gathering due to illness. He became president of the National Labor Union in 1868 and advocated international labor cooperation and independent political action. At the time of his death at the age of 41, he was urging the formation of a national Labor Reform party. Today’s labor quote is by William Sylvis "I love this Union cause. I hold it more dear than I do my family or my life. I am willing to devote to it all that I am or have or hope for in this world."
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