In TWU Election
Ex-Toussaint Ally Will Seek His Job

By GINGER ADAMS OTIS

Conductor Michael Carrube, a former supporter of Transport Workers' Union Local 100 President Roger Toussaint, announced July 12 that he'll be running for the union's top job in upcoming elections.

MICHAEL CARRUBE: Takes aim at Toussaint.

Mr. Carrube, a New York City Transit employee since 1989 and one-time member of the New Directions slate that brought Mr. Toussaint to power in 2001, has assembled his own team in an attempt to dethrone incumbent officials.

A Strike Critic

"We've formed a group called Fresh Start, and in the coming days I'll be announcing who my running mates are," Mr. Carrube said.

Although he is critical of Mr. Toussaint's handling of the strike that halted the city for three days in December and brought crushing penalties to Local 100, Mr. Carrube said his desire to head the union pre-dates its current contract battle.

"I was nominated to run for president along with Roger in 2001 as part of the New Directions group," Mr. Carrube said. "And I chose to defer to him, and let him run, so I stepped aside."

Since then, he said, he's had reason to regret that decision. In 2003 he ran for vice president and lost to Randy Nevels, a member of Mr. Toussaint's slate.

"I believe, despite a lot of controversy, that Roger did make some good changes within the union structure," Mr. Carrube said. "But as far as membership goes, I didn't see him doing anything productive to preserve jobs. He doesn't have an open-door policy for suggestions and opinions - he keeps officers who were duly elected by their peers at arms length."

Mr. Carrube is still refining the issues he says will make up his campaign platform, but offered a glimpse of what he considered his top priorities.

'Make Union More Open'

"There should be no Local 100 executive board members who are also paid staff for the union, and we need to restore open-door policies within the union," he said.

He added that his slate wants to "modify our political agenda outside the union," so that instead of just handing out endorsements with financing, the membership would have more of a voice in who the union backs for city and state offices. He agreed with Mr. Toussaint's decision to strike last December, but felt that the union leader "didn't give it his all and didn't do what needed to be done."

He called the concession made by Mr. Toussaint to have members contribute 1.5 percent of earnings toward health-care costs "horrendous."

Had a health-care concession been necessary under his leadership, Mr. Carrube said, he would have pushed Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman Peter L. Kalikow to give workers the same deal that supervisors have - a $6 dollar capped contribution monthly for individual health care and $23 for family benefits.

Local 100's elections will take place this November. Mr. Carrube is one of several challengers expected to run against Mr. Toussaint, but he's the only one to formally declare his candidacy so far.