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And the Transit Strike Winner Is...

The NYC transit workers' union got in 60 hours of right hooks, then went up against the ropes. And the New York Times today declares that ...

the-winner-is-1.jpg The NYC transit workers' union got in 60 hours of right hooks, then went up against the ropes. And the New York Times today declares that the union bested management in last week's strike.

To be sure, the MTA got some of what it wanted--including the union agreeing, for the first time, to have workers pay some of their wages toward their own health insurance. But the union got pay raises above the rate of inflation, and most importantly, rebuffed the MTA's attempt at extending the retirement age in order to shore up pension finances.

The Times quotes David L. Gregory, a labor relations expert at St. John's University:

"The union did especially well, all things considered....[Union president Roger]Toussaint got everything he needed, and he also got what he needed in terms of the bigger picture. With the strike, he mollified the radical left in his union and helped placate the middle of his rank and file who were demanding to be treated with dignity and respect."

The Wall Street Journal, meanwhile, calls (paid subscription) the strike "a watershed for the nation." While noting that the MTA "caved on pension reform," the Journal editorial gives the MTA credit for putting the looming issue of state and local pensions on the national agenda:

"With luck, the strike will be remembered as the moment state and local governments started to get serious about their long-term promises to their employees."

Christopher Swope was GOVERNING's executive editor.
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