Metrolink’s chief dispatchers, dispatchers, and communications workers are considering a possible strike, according to their union.
A spokesman for the Amalgamated Transit Union said Tuesday that workers and management were at an impasse after nearly two years of negotiations. According to the union, the sticking point is whether employees be at-will employees, who can be fired at any time without cause.
“One of the most fundamental principles of the labor movement is the right to due process, just cause in the workplace,” said ATU’s Art Aguilar. “History has shown again and again that a workplace without just cause can easily become a dictatorship. If an employer can terminate workers at-will and without cause, there is no foundation on which employees can assert their basic rights or enforce the terms of a contract they negotiate.”
“Metrolink is currently in negotiations with the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU),” Metrolink spokesman Mike Atchue said. “The ATU currently represents the Metrolink dispatchers and communications coordinators. We are continuing to negotiate in good faith. Metrolink will continue to provide safe and reliable train service to our riders.”