The Union View
Opinion from your professional drivers union:

Dear Lakeland Passenger,

In a cliffhanger, at 4:30 PM Sunday Governor Corzine convinced the Leo/Mazzarisi family to meet with the union this Tuesday. Lakeland management had refused to even meet with the ATU all weekend, opting instead to try to teach out of town strikebreakers to drive buses.

Lakeland has hired a high priced strikebreaking firm out of Michigan to import thugs to drive their buses in the event of a strike. The cost involved in this is huge and indicative of the plantation attitude of the Lakeland owners and perhaps their silent partners at New Jersey Transit.

Strike preparations were in their final phase on Sunday when the Governor’s representative, Labor Commissioner David Socolow got an agreement from Lakeland bosses to meet with the ATU on Tuesday.

At the Governor’s request the Union Executive Board postponed the job action for 72 hours. Mr. Socolow has arranged a meeting in his office Tuesday morning to try to resolve the conflict.

We thank the many passengers who have contacted the Governor and the union to express support.

Please continue to press the Governor to have New Jersey Transit take over these lines. If he did, the workers and the riders would get a fair deal. Strikes would be illegal and unnecessary. Disputes would go to arbitration~something Lakeland’s greedy $700,000 a year owners would never do. They are New Jersey’s version of Halliburton~spending taxpayers dollars on their private war against their own workers.

Your driver is working again today receiving 2004 wages. Please email atulocal1614@aol.com to sign up for updates on the negotiations. Please call the Governor today and urge him to have NJT take over the routes.

Your Bus Driver’s Union-ATU Local 1614 at your service!