Is a Strike Possible in Chicago?

[MrFSS]

A landmark agreement to reform the Chicago Transportation Authority's pension and health-are programs could be jeopardized by legislators' failure to resolve the months-long stalemate over new mass transit funding, labor leaders warned Thursday.

The reforms, written into a comprehensive transportation bill languishing in the General Assembly, are part of a CTA-labor accord that will expire Dec. 31. But the transit bill has taken a back seat to high-level talks over gambling legislation, which appeared to go nowhere again Thursday.

FULL STORY

 

[frj1983]

A landmark agreement to reform the Chicago Transportation Authority's pension and health-are programs could be jeopardized by legislators' failure to resolve the months-long stalemate over new mass transit funding, labor leaders warned Thursday.
The reforms, written into a comprehensive transportation bill languishing in the General Assembly, are part of a CTA-labor accord that will expire Dec. 31. But the transit bill has taken a back seat to high-level talks over gambling legislation, which appeared to go nowhere again Thursday.

FULL STORY

I would assume that a strike is a possibility,

even though the Head of the CTA says it's illegal. As a resident of Illinois, I must confess that I am chagrined by the current political shenanigans going on in Springfield and you can bet your bottom dollar I will be voting for new representatives in the next election! The current group, including our Governor are a bunch of morons!

 

[Steve4031]

Ilinois is about last in everything these days. Last in education spending, last in transportation spending. If this does not change quickly, Chicago will not be viable for the Olympics or for anything else. The Midwest needs a regional plan for transportation to remain viable. Europe is able to do this with different CCOUNTRIES, with its high speed network, and we cant get anything organized in one STATE.

 

[AlanB]

Ilinois is about last in everything these days. Last in education spending, last in transportation spending. If this does not change quickly, Chicago will not be viable for the Olympics or for anything else. The Midwest needs a regional plan for transportation to remain viable. Europe is able to do this with different CCOUNTRIES, with its high speed network, and we cant get anything organized in one STATE.

Illi isn't last in everything. I'm not sure how Illinois compares to spending State monies on commuter trains and inner-city buses/subways with NY State. But Illinois is light years ahead of NY State when it comes to spending money on improving Amtrak service within the state. NY State only helps to subsidized the Adirondack, nothing else. Illi has too many trains to name that they help to support.

 

[John Bredin]

The reforms, written into a comprehensive transportation bill languishing in the General Assembly, are part of a CTA-labor accord that will expire Dec. 31. But the transit bill has taken a back seat to high-level talks over gambling legislation, which appeared to go nowhere again Thursday.FULL STORY

And, showing once again that he doesn't really care if the transit crisis is resolved, Blago is calling a special legislative session on the transit-capital-gaming cluster-f on January 2nd. That's right, AFTER the deadline for the labor agreement. :angry:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/c...story?track=rss

Lest anyone call me a grinch, I think it's fine for the Legislature to have Christmas off. But Christmas is over on December 25, and the 26th is not a holiday. The special session should be called for the 26th.

I wish we could leggo our Blago under the Illinois Constitution with a binding recall vote!