Jun. 2—Transit workers in San Francisco have rejected a tentative labor agreement with the city, opening the door for a summer strike.
According to documents reviewed by the Chronicle, 990 members of the Transport Workers Union local chapter 250A, — which represents more than 2,000 light rail and bus operators, fare inspectors and mechanics, among other transit system employees — voted last week on the next three-year contract, with 377 approving, and 613 in opposition.
A message dated May 29 on Transport Workers Union letterhead said that the 2024-2027 contract "was not ratified." The union's current contract expires on June 30.
It was not immediately clear why the majority of voting members turned the new agreement down.
The move, which could paralyze San Francisco's sprawling bus and rail system, coincides with another devastating blow: Bay Area lawmakers said Friday they will scrap plans for a tax measure to save Muni, BART and other regional transit agencies from financial collapse. Muni serves more than 400,000 riders on an average weekday — about the same number of commuters thwarted by a BART strike in 2013.
Union president Anthony Ballester and Vice President Pete Wilson declined to comment, as did Jeffrey Tumlin, director of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency. A representative for San Francisco Mayor London Breed was not immediately available to comment.
Reach Rachel Swan: [email protected]
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