Tentative Accord Between RTD, Unions Eases Threat of Strike

The Southern California Rapid Transit District and two of its unions reached tentative agreements on new three-year contracts Monday, easing the threat of a strike that could have come as soon as midnight tonight.

The accords were negotiated with the Amalgamated Transit Union, representing about 2,000 mechanics and maintenance workers, and with the Transportation Communications Union, made up of about 650 clerical workers, according to RTD spokeswoman Andrea Greene.

Greene said the RTD on Thursday had reached a tentative agreement with the 4,500-member United Transportation Union, which represents bus drivers and operators of the Metro Rail Blue Line system.

All three unions had been working without a contract since June 30. In early July, Gov. Pete Wilson imposed a 60-day “cooling off” period, which was about to expire when the accords were reached.

“Everyone has been working long hours to try to beat the deadline,” Greene said of the negotiations that went on late into the night all last week and continued through the weekend.

“The bottom line is, there won’t be a bus strike,” Greene said.

Terms of the contracts will not be disclosed publicly until they can approved by the unions and the RTD Board of Directors.

The drivers and mechanics unions are scheduled to vote on their contracts Wednesday, the clerical union on Thursday.

Representatives of the unions could not be reached for comment Monday.