Frustrated with poor wages, low hours, unfair treatment and weak benefits, Challenger paratransit bus drivers in Gaithersburg have unanimously voted to authorize a strike if they fail to reach a fair and just contract.
Represented by Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1777 since last September when they voted in the union by an overwhelming margin, the paratransit bus operators have been in contract talks for almost a year. Challenger bus workers, who only drive 30 hours per week, are the lowest-paid paratransit bus operators in the region. “This strike vote sends a loud and clear message to Challenger that these drivers demand to be paid fairly and treated with the respect and dignity they deserve,” said ATU International Vice President Natalie Cruz. “This is a ‘Fight for 40’ - forty hours a week. We will settle for nothing less.” In today’s labor history, on this date in 1835, children working in the silk mills in Paterson, New Jersey went out on strike for an 11-hour day and 6-day week. A compromise settlement resulted in a 69-hour work week. Today’s labor quote is by feminist and labor activist Charlotte Perkins Gilman, born in Hartford, Connecticut on this date in 1860. Her landmark study, "Women and Economics,” was radical: it called for the financial independence of women and urged a network of child care centers. Charlotte Perkins Gilman, who said: “The first duty of a human being is to assume the right functional relationship to society - more briefly, to find your real job, and do it.” Union City Radio is supported by our friends at Union Plus. If you’re thinking about hitting a theme park with your family this summer, visit unionplus.org/entertainment to get savings at America’s favorite theme parks.
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