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Transit Union Boss Off To Jail (Finally)

Four months after he spearheaded the illegal strike of 30,000 MTA employees, shutting down New York City's public transit system, costing the city hundreds of millions of dollars, putting its millions of citizens at unnecessary risk and subjecting its emergency personnel to undue burden, Transport Workers Union President Roger Toussaint has been sentenced to 10 days in jail for his role in the strike.

(HT: GOP and the City)

And how have things gone for Toussaint and his membership in the months since they employed this unlawful bargaining tool as leverage to extort additional above-market wages and benefits from the city?  Let's review.

After the strike ended, the MTA came back to the TWU with an offer that was less favorable than their most generous pre-strike offer (as well they should have).  Cognizant of the reality of the situation, Toussaint accepted and urged the union rank-and-file to ratify the deal.  Instead, they turned it down by a margin of 7 votes.  The MTA then pulled the deal off the table and the two sides have danced around the bargaining table and binding arbitration ever since.  Aware that the impartial arbitration process will land them with a much less bountiful deal than they had grown accustomed to, the union has demanded a redo, seeking to vote again on the no-longer-valid deal, claiming they will demand the MTA honor the deal if the union ratifies it this time around.  The MTA has remained constant that that deal came off the table when the union voted it down.

Meanwhile, $3 million of fines have been imposed on the TWU (the Taylor Law mandates $1 million in fines per day of the strike and in fact allows that fine to double each day a strike drags on), a toll the union claims will bankrupt it.  Further, the state supreme court judge hearing the case may uphold a penalty that disallows the union from automatically deducting dues from members' paychecks, which would seriously cripple its revenue stream.

In other words, for all his lawless bravado and willingness to sacrifice the livelihood and safety of millions of New Yorkers for financial gain, Toussaint has since seen a very generous contract evaporate, the financial future of his union disintegrate, and now faces a jail sentence.

Well, I guess he can't argue that he couldn't see it coming...

Previously:
Justice Delayed
Transit Tribulations Roll On
New Yorkers Do It Underground
A Taste of Their Own Medicine
Decision Time for Illegal NYC Transit Strikers
Fat Lady Iced
What a Deal
Roger Toussaint's Billion Dollar Christmas Present
Back on Track
The [Unofficial] Not For Tourists Guide to NYC - Strike Edition
Strike 3 (Do Not Pass Go, Do Not Collect $62,000)
Transit Strike Update
TWU Walks Out On New york
New Yorkers Behaving Like New Yorkers
T-Minus 1 Hour: Transit Union Walks Out
No Progress on Transit Negotiations
Bracing for Bedlam
Bloomberg Steps Up
New York's Looming Illegal Transit Strike

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Transit Union Boss Off To Jail (Finally)

Four months after he spearheaded the illegal strike of 30,000 MTA employees, shutting down New York City's public transit system, costing the city hundreds of millions of dollars, putting its millions of citizens at unnecessary risk and subjecting its emergency personnel to undue burden, Transport Workers Union President Roger Toussaint has been sentenced to 10 days in jail for his role in the strike.

(HT: GOP and the City)

And how have things gone for Toussaint and his membership in the months since they employed this unlawful bargaining tool as leverage to extort additional above-market wages and benefits from the city?  Let's review.

After the strike ended, the MTA came back to the TWU with an offer that was less favorable than their most generous pre-strike offer (as well they should have).  Cognizant of the reality of the situation, Toussaint accepted and urged the union rank-and-file to ratify the deal.  Instead, they turned it down by a margin of 7 votes.  The MTA then pulled the deal off the table and the two sides have danced around the bargaining table and binding arbitration ever since.  Aware that the impartial arbitration process will land them with a much less bountiful deal than they had grown accustomed to, the union has demanded a redo, seeking to vote again on the no-longer-valid deal, claiming they will demand the MTA honor the deal if the union ratifies it this time around.  The MTA has remained constant that that deal came off the table when the union voted it down.

Meanwhile, $3 million of fines have been imposed on the TWU (the Taylor Law mandates $1 million in fines per day of the strike and in fact allows that fine to double each day a strike drags on), a toll the union claims will bankrupt it.  Further, the state supreme court judge hearing the case may uphold a penalty that disallows the union from automatically deducting dues from members' paychecks, which would seriously cripple its revenue stream.

In other words, for all his lawless bravado and willingness to sacrifice the livelihood and safety of millions of New Yorkers for financial gain, Toussaint has since seen a very generous contract evaporate, the financial future of his union disintegrate, and now faces a jail sentence.

Well, I guess he can't argue that he couldn't see it coming...

Previously:
Justice Delayed
Transit Tribulations Roll On
New Yorkers Do It Underground
A Taste of Their Own Medicine
Decision Time for Illegal NYC Transit Strikers
Fat Lady Iced
What a Deal
Roger Toussaint's Billion Dollar Christmas Present
Back on Track
The [Unofficial] Not For Tourists Guide to NYC - Strike Edition
Strike 3 (Do Not Pass Go, Do Not Collect $62,000)
Transit Strike Update
TWU Walks Out On New york
New Yorkers Behaving Like New Yorkers
T-Minus 1 Hour: Transit Union Walks Out
No Progress on Transit Negotiations
Bracing for Bedlam
Bloomberg Steps Up
New York's Looming Illegal Transit Strike