A Brinkmanship Test for Labor Federation Chief

Miguel Contreras has his hands around the neck of the mayor, whose eyes are wide with mock terror. In the next frame, Mayor Richard Riordan is wringing Contreras’ neck, while the leader of the County Federation of Labor feigns a gasping last breath.

Shot two years ago and fondly displayed in Contreras’ office, the photos took on new meaning in the tense days that led to Tuesday’s settlement of the bus drivers’ strike. For, in the end, this is what it came down to: a venture capitalist mayor in his final months of office versus an emerging union leader who envisions a much grander role for labor in the city’s future.

The bus strike was a high-stakes test of what Contreras--a grape picker’s son mentored by Cesar Chavez--has tried to build since taking the top job at the federation five years ago.

Handled badly, it could have fractured the city’s working class, pitting higher-wage African American drivers against low-wage immigrant workers who ride the bus. And failure at the bargaining table could have stopped cold the momentum of the city’s fledgling labor movement. That threat grew last week, when the union representing 47,000 county workers ended its strike after one day of tepid support by members.

“It’s a very important fight, a very public fight,” said Contreras, 48, as he headed into the thick of battle Friday. “We have to have a win.”

There is little doubt that the strike, and the contract that ended it, would have been far different were it not for Contreras’ intervention. Among other things, he engineered the crucial mediation role played by the Rev. Jesse Jackson in the past few days. Whether Contreras’ presence helped or exacerbated the overall bargaining process, however, is open to debate.

Several staff members of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and some board members grumbled privately that the strike would have ended weeks earlier if not for Contreras. “He has not been helpful to this process,” complained Deputy Mayor Manny Valencia. “This never would have happened under [former federation leader] James Wood.”

But bus drivers and their union leaders hold Contreras in almost saint-like regard. “We owe Miguel Contreras a debt we can never repay,” said UTU President James Williams, who was rarely more than a few steps from the labor chief in recent public appearances. “He was a lifesaver, and we won’t forget him. From now on, wherever Miguel Contreras wants us, whenever he wants us, we will be there.”

Deceptively soft-spoken and fixed with a perpetual half-smile, Contreras is sharp and tough. “He is like a brilliant chess player,” said one labor ally. “If he can’t beat you one way, he’ll find another.”

Always looking for connections, his greatest strength may be in forming alliances. They date back to his childhood in the Central Valley town of Delano, where Cruz Bustamante, who eventually became the first Latino speaker of the California Assembly, grew up across the street. State Sen. Richard Polanco was the best man at his first wedding, more than 20 years ago. His present wife, Maria Elena Durazo, president of an influential hotel workers union, is among the most recognizable labor leaders in Los Angeles.

Close friends include Assembly members Antonio Villaraigosa and Gil Cedillo, both former labor leaders who have taken leadership roles in the state Legislature. Contreras called on those and other friends in the Legislature last week to prod the MTA, which receives substantial funding from the state. The result: A joint legislative hearing in Los Angeles on Monday morning, which raised embarrassing questions about MTA finances and accountability.

Contreras also is a savvy and methodical strategist. He helped shape the union’s message--”Saving Middle Class Jobs”--and spread it through English and Spanish-language media. He organized rallies with thousands of union members, and arranged for strike support with $80,000 in donated food. He personally hounded Riordan and other key members of the transit board to sit in on bargaining sessions.

And it was Contreras who, ignoring Riordan’s pleas, brought in Jackson to break the impasse Friday.

The way he arranged that mediation speaks volumes about Contreras’ determined style. Riordan and other board members had flatly rejected Jackson, along with several other mediators proposed by the union, as partisan. Unfazed, Contreras, aided by Cedillo and Villaraigosa, arranged for Jackson to address a sympathetic City Council on Friday. But first, a series of priests, ministers and civil rights leaders plugged Jackson to the council as a skilled deal-maker.

By the time Jackson stepped to the podium, Riordan was on a cell phone with Contreras, pleading with him not to bring Jackson to the Pasadena Hilton, where talks were set to resume an hour later. “Yes, it would be a circus,” Contreras agreed. “Sure, I’ll talk to him. I’ll talk him out of it.”

Of course, Contreras intended no such thing, and Riordan probably knew him well enough to know it. Two more calls and 15 minutes later, Contreras was handing the phone to Jackson: “The mayor is calling,” he said. And Jackson purred into the phone, “You know, Mayor, I think we might be able to get a square peg in a round hole if we just work on it long enough.”

Contreras’ most crucial contribution to the drivers’ union may have come at the negotiating table, where he drew from two decades of bargaining experience with the United Farm Workers and the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees. He was rarely absent from those sessions, a quiet source of strength for UTU President James Williams.

“He didn’t say much,” said Robert Gonzalez, a member of the UTU bargaining team. “He just sat back and listened. Every once in a while, he’d tap you on the shoulder and say, ‘Could I have a word with you outside?’ ”

No matter how many times he heard “No,” Contreras said he went back for a yes. And he and Williams contend that obstinacy helped the UTU protect full-time union jobs on core MTA routes. The key, he said, was to never lose faith.

“One thing Cesar taught me is we don’t lose battles, we just give up,” he said. “I think about him at times like this, and my father. They were both my age and younger when they went through their battles. I always think, now it’s our turn at bat. We’d better make the most of it.”

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Chronology of MTA Talks

April 19 Negotiations begin between the MTA and one of its unions on a new contract. Initial bargaining sessions with two other unions follow in the next two weeks. Contracts apply to 6,800 bus drivers and train operators, mechanics and clerks.

June 19 United Transportation Union members, who operate MTA buses and trains, vote overwhelmingly to authorize a strike if necessary.

June 22 Members of the Amalgamated Transit Union, which represents MTA mechanics and maintenance workers, give leaders authority to call a strike.

June 30 MTA contracts are set to expire. Gov. Gray Davis invokes a seven-day cooling-off period and appoints an independent panel to review issues in the labor dispute.

July 5 Davis asks Atty. Gen. Bill Lockyer to seek a court order barring unions from striking for 60 days. The court’s decision ensures that MTA bus and rail service will continue through the Democratic National Convention in August. Negotiations continue sporadically during the summer.

Sept. 4 The no-strike order expires. The United Transportation Union and the Transportation Communications International Union, representing MTA clerks, agree to a five-day extension and promise to give the public five days’ notice of any walkout.

Sept. 7 Davis dispatches the head of the state Department of Industrial Relations to meet with all sides and find ways to mediate the dispute as negotiations make slow progress.

Sept. 9 The United Transportation Union prepares to strike if no contract is reached.

Sept. 11 The Los Angeles County Federation of Labor grants a strike sanction to MTA unions and asks other unions to respect their picket lines.

Sept. 14 Union leaders postpone strike for one day in hopes of averting a walkout.

Sept. 15 Talks break down. Union leaders declare strike.

Sept. 16 Strike begins. Drivers backed by mechanics, clerks and supervisors shut down all MTA-operated bus and rail lines, leaving 450,000 weekday riders without transportation.

Sept. 30 Davis signs union-backed legislation requiring any transit zone spun off from the MTA to honor wage, benefit and job-protection provisions of MTA union contracts for at least four years.

Oct. 10 MTA officials give union leaders the agency’s “last, best and final offer.”

Oct. 12 Union leaders reject the MTA’s offer; agency mails proposal directly to drivers’ homes.

Oct. 13 The Rev. Jesse Jackson is brought in by the unions as a mediator, beginning marathon weekend of negotiations. Striking drivers unanimously reject MTA’s “last, best and final offer.”

Oct. 17 Tentative agreement reached after all-night bargaining session. MTA board and striking drivers ratify three-year contract.

Source: Los Angeles Times

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L.A. Transit Strike History

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Date Union That Started Strike Length Aug.-Oct. 1974 United Transportation Union 68 days Aug.-Sept. 1976 Amalgamated Transit Union 36 days Sept.-Oct. 2000 United Transportation Union 32 days Aug.-Sept. 1979 Amalgamated Transit Union; 23 days Brotherhood of Railway, Airline and Steamship Clerks July-Aug. 1994 Amalgamated Transit Union 9 days Feb.-March 1972 Amalgamated Transit Union 6 days Sept. 1982 United Transportation Union 5 days

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Source: MTA