Posted on 12/21/2005 11:31:10 AM PST by NormsRevenge
NEW YORK - The city and state stepped up their pressure on striking transit workers Wednesday in hopes of forcing them back to work, and a judge said sending union leaders to jail was a "distinct possibility."
State Supreme Court Justice Theodore Jones, who is hearing several legal issues related to the strike, directed attorneys from the Transport Workers Union to bring president Roger Toussaint and other top officials before the court Thursday to answer to a criminal contempt charge.
He said he may sentence the union leaders to jail for refusing to end the strike, calling such a scenario a "distinct possibility."
Union lawyer Arthur Schwartz said Toussaint and the other officials are in negotiations with mediators and that hauling them into court could halt the talks.
Unions -- so beautiful. They are thugs, they break laws and given the New York liberal environment, they will not be thrown out as they should be. New York should take a lesson from Ronnie Reagan, and how he handled the air traffic controller strikers!!!
No one is going to jail. And I suspect that the union will never have to pay the fine either. Its too bad NYC isn't playing hardball with the TWU.
Fire them all and hire Katrina victims. Those transit jobs can't be as hard as air traffic controller jobs, and Reagan pulled that one off. (This won't happen, Bloomberg can't buck the NY Mob.)
If they send Touissant to jail it will just make him a martyr to his ignorant followers. He's a thug and I wish all of these idiots could be fired.
WWRRD?
Regardless of whatever a judge's political leanings happen to be, one thing each and every single one of them share in common is that they tend to get really pissed off if their orders aren't obeyed.
Agree completely - this is nothing but empty big talk as the city tries to save some face. Once the media furor has died down somewhat and not as many people will see them totally capitulate, the city will cave in full to the union and NYC residents and commuters will take it in the shorts once again.
The fine "amnesty" that was declared the last time the transit workers went on strike set a very bad precedent. As someone who's been walking 45 minutes from Grand Central to my office every morning and every evening, I wish it weren't so.
You watch. When "negotiations" are done, part of the agreement will be the waiver of all acrued fines.
He'd fire all their asses, just like he fired the air traffic controllers, amen to that.
:-} You betcha he would. Nice catch!
The union leaders need to be jailed; and Bloomberg and Pataki need to take a page from Ronald Reagan and fire all of the strikers like the air traffic controller strike.
I'll bet a few thousand Mexicans would be glad to do the jobs for half what the union goons demand.
Good idea. The lowest job pays $16.00 an hour to start. The motormen are starting at $25.00 an hour. They get real good benefits, a free metro card, pension, sick and vacation days, etc.
I am willing to bet there are plenty of people willing to replace the strikers if they fired them all.
Fire them all today. Cut the wages to $5/hr and give the jobs to illegal immigrants
They would save money, but I am all for deporting all illegals until the file proper paperwork.
the difference is this time they are striking in the cold. in 1980 i think it was in april. Walking in nyc in April isnt that bad, it might even be a pleasant stroll. If it snows now, all hell will break loose.
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