New labor contracts were approved Dec. 3 by the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Board of Directors for the agency’s three largest unions.
The following statement was issued by BART General Manager Bob Powers and labor leaders Jesse Hunt, president ATU Local 1555, John Arantes, BART chapter president SEIU Local 1021, Olivia Rocha, president SEIU Local 1021 Professional Chapter, and Sal Cruz, president AFSCME Local 3993:
“BART’s three largest unions and district management have agreed to new three-year contracts more than six months before the current contracts expire, increasing financial stability and predictability during BART’s most dire fiscal crisis.
“The agreements will allow BART to focus on providing consistent and reliable service and demonstrates our collective approach to addressing the pandemic and welcoming back riders. Board approval is the last step in what has been an extraordinary process of cooperation between represented workers and BART executive staff.
“The contract does not include a wage increase in the first year, beginning July 1, 2021. The contract calls for modest conditional wage increases in the second and third years if average weekday ridership reaches at least 60 percent of pre-pandemic levels. The conditional wage increase rises incrementally with each five percent ridership bump above 60 percent.
“The contracts had been set to expire on June 30, 2021. Members of the Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1555 (ATU), Service Employees International Union, Local 1021(SEIU), and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Local 3993 (AFSCME) voted to ratify the contracts before the Board votes.
“The new contract term is July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2024. BART Police unions are under contract until June 30, 2022.
“In addition to the wage provisions, the contracts include a modest number of changes, most notably adding station agent staffing at Antioch Station beginning March 22, as part of the next BART schedule change.
“While implementing new contracts greatly increases budget stability, it does not preclude the possibility of needing to revisit cost saving solutions to BART’s budget crisis. The agreement includes specific language that gives the parties the option to mutually agree to reopen the contract if additional savings become necessary to avoid layoffs. BART management and union leadership continue to work cooperatively to right-size the work force for current economic conditions but doing so in uncertain times will continue to be a challenge.
“Settling the labor contracts early is the latest example of BART employees stepping up to the plate in unprecedent times. Labor and management have been working in partnership since the beginning of the pandemic to promote safety and ensure reliable service for the public. We look forward to continuing to work together to ramp full service back up as soon as possible to ensure BART is in a position to support the Bay Area’s economic recovery.”
