Charlotte bus drivers vote down union contract. What’s next for city’s transit workers?
Charlotte Area Transit System bus drivers are expected to vote again on a union contract before the end of the year after striking it down last week.
CATS drivers, represented by SMART Union, voted Thursday not to ratify a tentatively agreed upon contract with RATP DEV USA, the company that manages drivers, according to an emailed statement from CATS. They’re expected to negotiate on the contract and vote again to ratify it on or before Dec. 31.
“RATP Dev and SMART Union leadership continue to negotiate the terms and will discuss modification requests from SMART Union members,” CATS said. “CATS staff is independent of all contract negotiations, is not privy to tentative agreements, and do not participate in contract discussions.”
WBTV first reported on the failed contract and ongoing negotiations.
CATS said it’s not aware of an imminent bus driver strike from union members. SMART Union did not say whether employees plan to strike in an emailed statement.
“Both parties are continuing their efforts to achieve a collective bargaining agreement, and negotiations are ongoing,” SMART Union spokesperson Ben Nagy wrote in an email.
RATP Dev, which employs 4,000 drivers across 18 states, did not respond to a request for comment.
In September, Charlotte bus drivers rejected a contract to raise wages by $2 an hour but reduce the number of unexcused absences for drivers.
A CATS driver’s starting wage is $18.77 an hour and they are allotted 10 unexcused absences, CATS spokesman Brandon Hunter previously told The Charlotte Observer.
The contract discussions come at a time where CATS is under scrutiny for reliability of service while the system faces staff shortages.
Driver shortages led CATS to trim the frequency of some bus routes this summer. Vacant positions, employee absences, scheduled vacations and days off all affected transit system schedules, officials said.
Former CATS CEO John Lewis left the agency this November for a private sector job. Assistant City Manager Brent Cagle is serving as the interim chief while CATS undergoes a national search for a new CEO.
This story was originally published December 20, 2022 at 10:04 AM.
