Labor Updates (10/26/07)

OT Keeps Wheels Turning: "It's easy to blame excessive overtime as the cause of a Metro fare increase ["Discussion of Metro Fare Hike Postponed," 9/14 Washington Post]," wrote ATU 689 President Jackie Jeter in a 10/7 letter published in the Post. "But do Metro's patrons really want to reduce overtime in the transit system? If there aren't enough trains or buses to make the normal schedule, it could be operated with fewer, and passengers could be left at the stations and bus stops to wait for the next one. Additional service for special events could be eliminated, leading to crowded trains, buses and, let's not forget, roads as more people drove their cars to events. Bus and train operators could simply offload passengers when their eight-hour shift is up and return to the yards. Is this what anyone really wants?" Click here to read the entire letter. Restoring Hope at Greater Southeast: A $79 million final agreement to help the for-profit company Specialty Hospitals of America purchase the Greater Southeast Community Hospital passed the DC City Council Wednesday, reported Nikita Stewart and Susan Levine in Wednesday's Washington Post. The agreement passed "despite a warning from the city's chief financial officer that [Specialty] is financially unstable," Stewart and Levine reported. "We are grateful for the support and commitment of Mayor Adrian Fenty, Chairman Vincent Gray and Councilmember David Catania who worked hard to restore healthcare and hope for Greater Southeast," Sam Epps, Political Director of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, MD/DC division - one of the three unions, including the DC Nurses Association and the Doctors Council of DC, that represents workers at the facility - tells UNION CITY! "We'd like to see some changes. We've been through some bad times in the last ten years - now we're hopeful for the future," said Timothy Wright, a floor tech at the hospital for 29 years.