Community disaster

Because the MTA is a public agency it is recognized that a major community disaster will require the services of the MTA’s equipment with its facilities far beyond those normally provided. In the event of such a disaster and in recognition of its mandated obligation to the public - TWU Local 100 members’ compensation of all hours worked should be based on the rate of pay of two and one-half times (2 1⁄2x) the employee’s regular rate of pay. They should be paid during the period of such unusual demands caused by the disaster, provided that the equipment is provided to the community at large.

That policy should be followed regardless of who issues the declaration of the disaster - whether the executive branch, legislative branch or MTA. In the event that there was no declaration however later on if the legislative branch or the judiciary branch declare or rule the past events as a community disaster then the members of TWU Local 100 must be paid retroactively with the rate of pay of two and one-half times (2 1⁄2x) the employee’s regular rate of pay.

The Indian Tsunami of 2004, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, together with the worldwide evidence of global warming illustrate that communities and people are increasingly becoming more vulnerable to natural hazards. It is estimated that in the last ten years, disasters affected more than 3 billion people, killed over 750,000 people, and cost more than US$600 billion (Birkmann, 2006). This trend of loss of human lives and property damage suggests that our communities are not resilient enough to natural disasters. Everyone around us is being compensated handsomely however not us - we wonder why.

However we the members of TWU Local 100 are like most people, who work daily and  encounter disaster frequently however we are not rightfully compensated. You probably don't give much thought to what you would do in a disaster because you are trained, you know what to do and how to do it. But disasters like tornadoes, fires, floods, or even power outages, affect us every day. Emergencies that are beyond anyone's control happen. What keeps them from reaching disastrous proportions is preparedness. However that is only one aspect of events.

We here in why did you join the union demand from our president of TWU Local 100 John Samuelsen to attain our rightful compensation in the contract of 2012 for all hours worked on community disaster. Which specifically should be based on the rate of pay of two and one-half times (2 1⁄2x) the employee’s regular rate of pay. Samuelsen must prove by deed, action speaks louder.