Letters from NYC

Stress, Life and the NYC Transit Strike

My Christmas is being interrupted on 2 counts. Right now I’m in the Emergency Rm. where I’m being treated for an allergic reaction to something (don’t know yet to what). So I’m being pumped full of drugs and waiting for a couple of hours for the reaction to stop before I’m realized. Side effects are a permanent grin on my face from the drugs. Also funny/insightful thoughts spring up, courtesy of all the drugs. Let’s see in a few days if this post makes sense or if I can blame this week on a full moon.

First, a couple of observations on the planning for this strike. The pre and post-9/11 contingency plans have been updated and the information was made available to the public a few days ago. All large corporations had received a draft version of these plans last week. At my firm, we activated our Disaster/Emergency Business Recovery Plan. Because of my security experience I was recruited to develop a plan for my department for our current location. The neat thing… I was given free rein which resulted in the plan being finalized 48hrs before the strike deadline. Having thought I was done I went home and returned the next morning to find my cubicle had been ransacked the night before, and several personal belongings stolen. As a result I spent yet another day with our security staff, this time dealing with the theft.

As if all of this weren’t enough, I let my co-worker pick up a late lunch for me because I had been dealing with the security staff and the NYPD most of the day, and 6 hours later I’m in the emergency room full of drugs, trying not to scratch and experiencing not a care in the world.

Now about the strike, I am angry with the private independent MTA Board that manages the operations of the NYC Transit System, which employs close to 40,000 workers, and let the negotiations lag until the 11th hour. As if that wasn’t enough, the idiots announced it had a 1Billion dollar surplus, after a 30% increase in the fare 3 months ago. They were crying poverty before the fare increase, they publicized the surplus to the high heavens not even a month ago, and now they’re crying poverty all over again by saying by the end of 2006 they will experience a 3Billion dollar deficit. This is plain, boneheaded idiocy on the part of the Board and they should all be removed. All the individuals on this Board, along with their spokespeople, display such unbelievable arrogance, that I would love for Eric’s cousin, Brad, to neuter them, as he does his bulls, except I want a dull cut, a hard yanking and without anesthetic.

Other unions have now joined the transit workers, in a strike threat, in solidarity with and for the transit workers struggle. In doing so they are now holding city residents hostage. In anticipation of a strike, all sporting goods stores are holding huge sneaker sellathons.

As for me, aside from being mad as hell, I’m lucky enough to be able to telecommute for some of my job duties, however, for the rest I’ll have to walk the 9.5 miles to work (part of that over a very high bridge that spans 1.5 miles over the East River). My plan: I’ll be using my remaining vacation time for the duration of the strike. In the meantime, I think I’ll make a few voodoo dolls out of medical gauze strips and send them into the labor negotiation room.

Yep, that should do it. That should work off my anger and frustration with all the parties involved.

Posted by Michele at December 16, 2005 12:52 AM | TrackBack