Union Wins Tentative Agreement for Liberty Lines Members

The TWU negotiating team included President Tony Utano, Vice President Peter Rosconi, Vice President and Chief of Staff Richard Davis, Private Operations Division Chair Carlos Bernabel, Liberty Lines Division Chair and Valhalla Deport Chair Tom Monaco, Yonkers Depot Chair Janet Rosa, Maintenance Chair John Cullen, Executive Board member Manny Agosto, and General Counsel Denis Engel.
The TWU negotiating team included President Tony Utano, Vice President Peter Rosconi, Vice President and Chief of Staff Richard Davis, Private Operations Division Chair Carlos Bernabel, Liberty Lines Division Chair and Valhalla Deport Chair Tom Monaco, Yonkers Depot Chair Janet Rosa, Maintenance Chair John Cullen, Executive Board member Manny Agosto, and General Counsel Denis Engel.

MARCH 1 -- TWU Local 100 negotiators have secured a new 5-year contract for more than 600 drivers and maintainers employed at Liberty Lines Transit in Westchester County.
 
Local 100 President Tony Utano announced the contract late Sunday evening (Feb. 28, 2021) after an intense weekend of bargaining at the Doubletree Hotel in Tarrytown.  The contract was to expire at midnight on Sunday. Utano praised the negotiating team for achieving each one of the union’s four major pre-bargaining goals on wages, dental, pension and sick days.
 
“I am very proud of the work we did here for our members at Liberty in a very difficult bargaining atmosphere.  Our team demonstrated unity, determination and professionalism throughout the process, and that is why we have come away with a tentative contract that I believe the membership will overwhelmingly endorse.”
 

The two sides had launched bargaining on Jan. 20, 2021. With the expiration of the agreement quickly approaching, union and management negotiators convened on Saturday Feb. 27, 2021 for round-the-clock talks in an attempt to get an agreement done.
 
Highlights of the contract include an 11-percent compounded wage increase over the five-year agreement as follows:

Effective March 1, 2021, a 1.75% increase.
Effective March 1, 2022, a 2.0% increase.
Effective March 1, 2023, a 2.25% increase.
Effective March 1, 2024, a 2.5% increase.
Effective March 1, 2025, a 2.5% increase.
 
On pension, the union secured a $10 increase in the multiplier formula, from the current $105.00 per month times years of service to $115.00 per month times years of service for all years of service.  The new formula would go into effect for those who retire after Jan. 1, 2022. The union secured a much-improved dental plan under the National Plan Plus, another pre-bargaining goal.
 
For the first time, the membership will get 7 days for sick time usage from among 3 personal days, two floating holidays and two sick days. Previously, the membership received six personal days a year, that in most cases, could not be converted for sick time because of a 48-hour notice rule, as well as other restrictions. The new sick program complies with the New York State Sick Leave Law.
 
On health care, the union maintained all benefits, and won a three-year freeze on employee contributions.  After the three years, the plan’s finances will be reviewed in hopes of continuing the freeze.
 
On pension, the union won a full five-year freeze on additional employee contributions. The union also secured increases in the uniform and cleaning allowances for Transportation, and the shoe and tool allowances for Maintenance. In transportation, negotiators secured an increase in the Articulated Bus bonus from 25 cents per hour to $1.00 per hour, which will add approximately $225,000 in wages for Operators.The sides also agreed on an upgraded “perfect attendance” bonus that could add one more day of additional pay for workers who hit the attendance mark for the entire year. The Memorandum of Understanding will be presented to the Local 100 Executive Board for review and approval in March.  It will then go to the membership for ratification. 
 
The TWU negotiating team included President Tony Utano, Vice President Peter Rosconi, Vice President and Chief of Staff Richard Davis, Private Operations Division Chair Carlos Bernabel, Liberty Lines Division Chair and Valhalla Deport Chair Tom Monaco, Yonkers Depot Chair Janet Rosa, Maintenance Chair John Cullen, Executive Board member Manny Agosto, and General Counsel Denis Engel.