Local 1715 members ratify contract with CATS

Bus operators of SMART Local 1715 in Charlotte, N.C., on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023, ratified a new collective bargaining agreement with a vote margin of 20 to 1. The new contract for the operators for the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) calls for a significant wage increase, double-time for holidays and the additional holiday of […]

FMCSA pre-employment requirement in effect Jan. 6

On November 4, 2022, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse published information titled “Pre-employment Investigations for Drug and Alcohol Program Violations.” The Clearinghouse notice (see below) is a reminder to certain employers regarding a change requirement that went into effect Jan. 6, 2023.  On that date, three years of violation data […]

Calif. governor signs bill placing Santa Cruz members under PERB

On Sept. 2, Calif. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed S.B. 957 into law, thus placing employees of the Santa Cruz Metro (SCM) under the umbrella of the state’s Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) to foster improved relations between public employees and management. The law takes effect Jan. 1, 2023. The bill was introduced in the state Senate […]

Fundraiser established for GC’s cancer fight

General Chairperson Craig Patch (GCA-TMM) is facing a diagnosis of brain cancer and a fundraiser has been established to help him and his family through a difficult time. LCA-TMM Secretary Michael Jenkins said Brother Patch faces a treatment period of a year to 18 months. He will begin chemo treatments Aug. 29. GC Patch has […]

TD president addresses SMART General Session, TD officers

On the first day of the first-ever SMART Leadership Conference, Transportation Division President Jeremy Ferguson updated hundreds of SMART officers on the progress his administration has made in strengthening our union since his administration took office in 2019. It was President Ferguson’s first opportunity to address a large, live assemblage of the union since the […]

Bill’s passage would place Santa Cruz Metro under PERB

A bill under consideration in the California Legislature would place employees of the Santa Cruz Metro under the umbrella of the state’s Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) to foster improved relations between public employees and management. S.B. 957 was introduced in the state Senate by state Sen. John Laird (D) on March 17. The bill’s […]

TTD: 20 unions urge FTA to protect transit workers from assault

FTA has not yet implemented worker safety provisions in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. WASHINGTON – Today, 20 labor organizations representing transit drivers and other transportation workers urged Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Administrator Nuria Fernandez to immediately implement the safety provisions in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) to protect transit workers from assault. […]