MTA BROOKLYN BUS DRIVERS AT SPRING CREEK DEPOT DUMPING THEIR UNION

For people looking for precedent for public employees in NYS decertifying their union and starting a new one, look no further than Brooklyn where the MTA bus drivers at the Spring Creek Depot have signed pledge cards to drop the Amalgamated Transit Union and start their own union.

These workers have been without a contract since 2012.

From the Chief Leader (Most of the article is behind a pay wall.):

Spring Creek Drivers Look to Bolt ATU To Create Own Union By BOB HENNELLY Bus drivers who work out of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Spring Creek Depot in Brooklyn are one step closer to breaking away from Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1181 and forming their own union after winning the right to vote to do so when the Public Employment Relations Board last month ordered a decertification election that is expected to be held in November. Read more

Since our October 5 post came out on what it would take to fix the UFT internally or for the high school division to oust the UFT and start a new union, we have received some inquiries and several commitments to help with fragmenting the high schools into a separate bargaining unit but not enough to make anyone at the UFT sweat.

Due to the fact that the UFT is a huge union, we would need a monumental effort with at least a hundred high school activists (or middle school or elementary school activists for their divisions) obtaining scores of signatures to get a showing of interest petition to the Public Employees Relations Board. 30% of the approximately 20,000 high school teachers would need to sign the petition to get it to PERB.

Our main point in writing the October 5 post was to say that bolting from the UFT and starting over or fixing it from within would both require massive undertakings. If teachers in much larger numbers than are currently involved, are willing to become active, we can make a difference. If, however, folks have given up on the prospect of a real union, then conditions in the schools will continue to deteriorate. It's too late to just blame Michael Mulgrew for that.

Union power comes from a rank and file willing to do whatever it takes to improve working conditions, not from a leader. Leaders can only help move the center of gravity in the right direction. Our colleagues need to be persuaded that it is in their interest to become involved in a militant, activist union.

As my colleague now retired Chapter Leader from Bryant High School Sam Lazarus repeatedly says:

"The two problems with the UFT are the leadership and the membership." 

We can't solve the leadership problem without first activating the membership. It is up to all of you and make no mistake about it, nothing will be easy.