More Unsettling Confusion Emanates From the Port Authority

With all the talk about the need for a City-County merger so the region can speak with one voice, it seems the County government might be hearing multiple ones inside its own head. That’s the only explanation making any sense when the County Executive said in Executive Order 2007-1 that Allegheny County is legally required to provide the Port Authority (PAT) with annual funding while at the same time vowing to withhold state required local match funds until PAT’s unions make substantial concessions. Now, to further complicate the picture, the County has, as of this writing, voiced no opposition to the revelation that PAT is making plans to borrow the money necessary to receive state funds and keep the transit system unions on the job. Continue

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

does this mean that a strike can be averted?

Shaun Pierce said...

I doubt it. Borrowing money is a temporary and false fix. It's not real reform. Real reform will be painful and most likely opposed by union leaders every step of the way.

Anonymous said...

I feel that it should be illegal for Port Authority workers to strike, it creates unsafe conditions on the roads. Ambulances and fire trucks would find it impossible to wedge through the lines of bumper to bumper traffic, the last strike which was in 91 or 92 went on for 28 days, that should have ended long before that, they have to understand that there are people out there making a lot less money than they are and are paying far more towards medical coverage, etc. Its time for someone to put their foot down and say striking is illegal.

Shaun Pierce said...

Striking is the union too to get what they want. If a working is being paid unfair wages then they should have the right to strike. However, when greed and power are at the center of negotiations on the part of the worker then strikes become a damaging force to all.

The sad part is unions have a great history. Yet over time many have become what they fought against. Power hungry, greedy and the downfall of hard workers who excell at what they do.