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WHAT STRIKERS FORGOT

What Strikers Forgot

To the Editor:

It is not my intention to characterize the TWU Local 100 strike from the legalistic, formal, or technical point of view. Some tried to give it a racial coloratura, but we notice and praise the fact that the structure of New York City Transit work force corresponds to the melting pot of the city.

Others saw it as a class struggle (which are the two classes in this instance?). In reality, a logical and linguistic (semantic) analysis of the denotation and connotation of the notion "strike," and its designating word, shows that in this particular case the workers did not undertake a strike against a corporation (MTA management did not and could not lose a penny!). They struck against millions of residents, commuters and visitors.

And it did not affect a private company. It brought headache, hardship, supplementary and undeserved expenses to millions of people with lower wages and benefits than the strikers and, moreover, who do not own cars. (For me, personally, the psychological suffering and financial burden continued two more weeks in the aftermath of the strike).

In short, the damage for the "adversary" employer was minimal, but the number of innocent "collaterals" hurt was huge. And those are, in the last instance, the real collective owners of subway and bus lines (just administered through an Authority). It is like their trains and buses had been "hijacked" (if this term is too strong, how about the "the rabid dog news media," in the flyer published by Local 100 in the aftermath of the strike?) The people of New York should in ultimate instance approve the start of a strike. Therefore, how to show solidarity when they are strike-bound? Why not use instead the legal forms of protest like other city locals: demonstrations, marches, rallies? What would happen if the police, fire personnel, EMS, school employees would paralyze the city similarly?

Having a public-sector job involves a high social responsibility of dedicated collective servants. It is what the strikers' commandment forgot for a few days, despite the fact that is the exact motto of the Local 100: "We Move New York!"

We appreciate how important the transit workers are to our existence, and at their turn they ought to appreciate our patronage (if not just the public ownership). It sounded strident, like a jealous voice, when the management of Local 100 discussed the MTA surplus of money that was given in holiday discounts to all the riders instead of rewarding them.

EUGEN FRUCHTER, Member of DC 37, Local 371