UNION WORKERS FIGHT FOR JUSTICE
Dem. Nat'l Convention: Specter of picket lines
By Stevan Kirschbaum
Readville Chief Steward,
USWA Local 8751, Boston
Over 350 Boston school bus drivers and
monitors, plus their supporters, took their struggle for
contract justice to the steps of the School Department on June
7. The workers traveled from four bus yards located throughout
the city. They came by car, by mass transit and by boarding
union-sponsored "caravan for justice" buses.
Leading the caravan was a union sound truck and mobile
stage, brightly decorated with placards reading "Contract now!
Safety for children! Justice for drivers and monitors," and
"Say no to racist anti-busing forces. Unite and fight for
quality schools."
The drivers and monitors have joined in a coalition with all
the major city unions--including teachers, custodians, public
works, clerical and technical workers, water and sewer
commission workers and others--called Boston Unions United for
Fair Contracts. While the media, parroting the line of the city
government, have attempted to falsely portray this as a
struggle solely between Mayor Thomas Menino and his police
department, nothing could be further from the truth.
The labor struggle's impact goes beyond Boston, because it
raises the specter of workers picketing at construction
projects for the upcoming Democratic National Convention or at
the convention itself. The June 9 Boston Globe reported that
Sen. John Kerry's main convention planners were intervening
with union leaders in a push to settle the conflict. Democratic
Party officials told the Globe, "They spoke about making a push
to settle the city's contracts with firefighters and the
Service Employees International Union."
The bus driver rank and file were making their own
intervention June 7. Powered by a mega-sound system, their
caravan filled downtown with historic union songs by the
Almanac Singers. City Hall and Govern ment Center reverberated
with chants. As each bus arrived, a new flood of workers joined
the throng. Their message to the city and to First Student,
Inc., their anti-labor management company, was clear--"No union
busting!"
Labor solidarity is key to victory
At the conclusion of the drivers and monitors' rally, the
workers piled into the buses and the caravan wound through
Boston's streets to the Boston Teachers Union for a scheduled
meeting of the Greater Boston Labor Council. The city
government and the convention planners have been working
overtime to drive a wedge into the labor movement. They hoped
that the GBLC would sign "Project Labor Agreements"
guaranteeing labor peace in return for work retrofitting the
Fleet Convention Center.
The caravan brought the entire demonstration into the BTU
hall to aid in the effort to solidify solidarity and send the
message that the unions will remain united until all have their
contracts. Many of the delegates gave the drivers' union a
standing ovation. After 15 minutes the workers poured out of
the hall, declaring to the assembled media that the vote, by an
overwhelming majority, clearly showed that Boston labor would
not break ranks. The GBLC will not sign the Project Labor
Agreements.
According to Steve Gillis, president of USWA Local 8751,
Boston school bus union, "This vote sends a message to the city
and the corporations that Boston unions stand united. An injury
to one is an injury to all."
The steel union local represents over 1,300 school bus
drivers and monitors, the overwhelming majority from the
Haitian, African American, Cape Verdean and Latino communities.
They provide a vital safety service to the city of Boston and
are fighting for economic justice from First Student, Inc.
Awarded a multimillion-dollar vendor contract to manage the
school bus transportation for the city, First Student has come
to the negotiating table demanding cutbacks and concessions
from the workers. First Group, the British parent of First
Student, reports on its investor website an increased operating
profit of $382.5 million in 2003. Financial studies by the
unions have disclosed that Boston currently has the largest
reserves in its history. Clearly, First Student and Boston City
Hall can well afford to meet the workers' economic demands.
Rally resonates with community-worker
solidarity
Speaking at the June 7 rally at the School Department in
solidarity with the drivers and the monitors were leaders of
the Massachusetts AFL-CIO, Greater Boston Labor Council,
Steelworkers international, and Local 26 Hotel & Restaurant
Workers. Nancy Younassi, a teacher for over 30 years, stated
that Boston's teachers are prepared to walk the line with
drivers and monitors.
Myles Calvey, head of the powerful IBEW Local 2222 of
Verizon telephone workers and vice president of the Mas
sachusetts AFL-CIO, pledged his support. He recounted that
during the 1989 telephone workers' strike, the first people
arrested on the picket lines were from the bus drivers'
union.
Jerry Scoppettuolo, a co-founder of Mas sachusetts AFL-CIO
Pride at Work and Stonewall Warriors of ANSWER, recognized the
local's historic contributions in the struggle to end
discrimination against the gay, lesbian, bi, and trans
community.
The history of the Boston school bus drivers over the last
30 years is irrevocably tied to the struggle against racism in
education. They have faced rocks, bricks and bigots in carrying
out their job of transporting Boston's students. They have
marched in countless demonstrations, from Boston to
Washington.
The union has stood shoulder to shoulder with the community
in its fight for equal quality education. Recently the forces
of racism have once again reared their ugly heads, rallying
behind the false slogan of a "return to neighborhood schools."
This slogan is a thin disguise for a program designed to deny
Boston's communities of color the right to equal education.
Local 8751 has joined in the coalition to fight these recent
attacks and brought concrete solidarity. Last winter, for
example, the union printed and distributed over 25,000 leaflets
on the buses for the children to bring home. This mobilized
hundreds of parents for a historic meeting last Feb. 10 at the
12th Baptist Church in Rox bury, where they determined that a
return to segregation under the slogan of "neighborhood
schools" will not be tolerated.
City Councilor Chuck Turner recogni zed the union's
contributions and pledged that the community would stand with
the union. Speakers demonstrating the broad array of support
included representatives from Act Now to Stop War and End
Racism (ANSWER), the Women's Fight back Network, ACORN,
Minister Victor Carpenter and others.
Stephanie Nichols, a youth organizer from Workers World
Party, delivered solidarity greetings from the John Parker/
Teresa Gutierrez presidential campaign. She explained that
Democratic front-runner John Kerry's program was anti-labor and
pro-war and in no way represents an acceptable alternative to
Bush for working people.
Yves Alcindor of the recently formed New England Human
Rights Organi zation for Haiti brought news of the struggle of
the Haitian people against the U.S. occupation and pledged his
group's 100-percent support. The drivers' union, at its May
membership meeting, had voted unanimously to join and provide
financial support to help build this organization.
When the protestors noticed that the chief negotiators for
the city and First Student were spying on the demo from a
fifth-floor window, the crowd declared with one voice that
their rally was just a preview of what is to come.
While Boston's poor and oppressed neighborhoods are
suffering from neglect, with social services, education and
healthcare being cut, Mayor Menino and the city are squandering
millions of dollars in give-aways to the corporate developers
and preparing for an obscene orgy of parties for the rich.
Meanwhile, the workers who make Boston run are without
contracts. The unions have declared their intent to bring their
protest to the Democratic National Convention.
Reprinted from the June 17, 2004, issue of
Workers World newspaper
This article is copyrighted
under a Creative
Commons License.
Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY, NY 10011
Email: ww@workers.org
Subscribe to WW by Email: wwnews-subscribe@workersworld.net
Donate to
support pro-labor, anti-war news.
Email
this article
Printable
page