PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — SEPTA city transit workers say they want hazard pay included in their next contract, according to a recent poll.
Transport Workers Union Local 234 conducted an online poll of its members asking them to rank their priorities for upcoming labor negotiations. After a year and a half of operating SEPTA vehicles during the coronavirus pandemic, union President Willie Brown said members want hazard pay established in the next contract.
“It’s going to drive the negotiations, because again, when you consider that our people have been on the front lines, that’s what everybody’s stuck on,” Brown said. “We’re on the front lines, and they want to be compensated for the risk they’re taking.”
Brown said about 800 of the union’s 5,000 members have tested positive for COVID-19. Ten have died from the virus.
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“In the last couple of contracts, we paid more into the benefits here or there,” Brown said. “[The members] want to hold the line to keep their benefits at the same level and not pay more into it. But it seems the No. 1 thing that’s unusual is hazardous duty pay.”
He said members also want better sick pay.
“If they call out sick, for the first three days you don’t get any pay at all. Zero,” Brown explained, adding that sick pay starts with half-pay on the fourth day.
He would also seek to add language protecting union jobs, should SEPTA ever operate autonomous buses.
SEPTA spokesperson Andrew Busch wouldn’t discuss specific contract issues, but he said the transit agency appreciates the efforts of its employees.
“We’re grateful to our front-line workers for their efforts during the pandemic,” he said. “They helped keep SEPTA moving, helped keep the region moving. We’re looking forward to working with them on a new contract that is fair and responsible.”
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SEPTA ridership overall is about 45% of pre-pandemic levels. The transit agency’s budget has been supported by $1.5 billion from three rounds of federal COVID-19 relief funds, but Busch noted SEPTA had to look beyond that.
“It’s temporary,” he said. “We do have to make sure that we’re getting to a point that we’re on stable ground and that our operations are sustainable.”
The two sides are expected to issue formal proposals in a month or so. The current five-year contract expires on Oct. 31.